Senate Finance Committee demands review of personal appearance and PEP clearance requirements for lawmakers seeking foreign currency, expressing displeasure over the central bank’s response.
ISLAMABAD, November 4, 2026: The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue has warned the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) of serious action over non-compliance with its directions concerning foreign exchange facilities for parliamentarians.
The warning came during a committee meeting chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, which reviewed several financial and economic matters, including the government’s borrowing plan, the Pakistan Sovereign Wealth Fund (Amendment) Bill 2026 and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) governance.
The committee directed the SBP to review existing procedures for providing foreign currency to parliamentarians for personal travel, particularly politically exposed person (PEP)-related clearance requirements.
Members objected to the mandatory personal appearance of parliamentarians before exchange companies despite submitting valid passports, airline tickets and visas.
The chairman described the requirement as humiliating and demanded an immediate review. The committee also expressed serious displeasure over the SBP’s October 30 response to its letter, noting that it had been handled by a Deputy Director-level officer rather than an appropriately senior authority.
Mandviwalla warned that the committee would take serious notice if the matter remained unresolved.
Pakistan’s public debt and borrowing plan
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb briefed the committee on the Annual Borrowing Plan, projecting public debt at Rs86.7 trillion, additional borrowing of Rs6.86 trillion and gross financing requirements of Rs28.65 trillion.
The government informed members that public debt had declined from 75.1 per cent of GDP in FY2023 to 68.6 per cent in FY2026.
Pakistan was also expected to comfortably meet approximately $5 billion in debt-servicing obligations over the following six months while maintaining foreign exchange reserves of $21.5 billion.
The chairman appreciated the government’s economic stabilisation efforts but stressed that their benefits must reach ordinary citizens.
Other decisions and concerns
The committee deferred detailed consideration of the Pakistan Sovereign Wealth Fund (Amendment) Bill 2026 until its next meeting, when members will conduct a clause-by-clause review.
It also urged the Finance Ministry to resolve the pending salary increase issue affecting Tenure Track System (TTS) professors.
Separately, the FBR informed the committee that long-pending income tax refund cases involving Gumcorp Private Limited and Oleocorp Private Limited had been resolved in compliance with its directions.
The committee also adopted its sub-committee’s report on business community consultations, industrial relocation and governance, accountability and policy practices within the FBR.