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Short answer Send through an exchange house or bank licensed by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) to a bank account, cash counter or wallet in Pakistan. The UAE was the second-largest source of Pakistan’s workers’ remittances in FY26, as reported from SBP data. On the Pakistan side, SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 12 of 2026 requires banks and exchange companies to keep qualifying remittances “free-of-cost for the senders and beneficiaries”. The minimum eligible transaction is US$200.
At a glance
- FY26 remittances from the UAE: US$8,806.9 million, second after Saudi Arabia, as reported by APP from SBP data (APP ↗ · checked 2026-09-28)
- Growth on FY25: 12.5%, as reported by Dawn (Dawn ↗ · checked 2026-09-28)
- Cost of a qualifying remittance in Pakistan: free for sender and beneficiary (SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 12 of 2026 ↗ · checked 2026-09-28)
- Minimum eligible transaction: US$200 (SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 04 of 2025 ↗ · checked 2026-09-28)
- Remittance complaints in Pakistan: PRI call centre +9221-111-727-774 (PRI ↗ · checked 2026-09-28)
SBP’s circulars bind banks, microfinance banks and exchange companies in Pakistan. They do not set what a UAE provider charges. Check the provider’s own fee and rate before you send.
We list a provider only if its own page says it sends to Pakistan and the CBUAE register confirms its licence. This is not a complete list and not a ranking. So far we have verified five providers.
| Provider | Licence (source) | Payout in Pakistan, as stated by the provider | Fee the provider publishes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Ansari Exchange | Exchange business, CBUAE register no. 03.01.03.002.1981.01 (CBUAE ↗) | Bank account (telegraphic transfer or “Instant Credit”) and cash pickup | “For bank transfers and cash pick-up services above AED 740 … there are no charges to be paid by the customer”; 5% VAT on service charges | Al Ansari Exchange ↗ |
| Al Fardan Exchange | Exchange business, CBUAE register no. 03.01.03.001.1981.01 (CBUAE ↗) | Bank account; wallet transfer (Pakistan is named in its wallet transfer table) | Key Facts Statement: bank account transfers AED 0 to AED 30; wallet transfers AED 15 to AED 50 | Al Fardan Key Facts Statement ↗ |
| LuLu International Exchange | Exchange business, CBUAE register no. 03.01.03.090.2008.01 (CBUAE ↗) | Not stated for Pakistan. LuLu Money names Pakistan among its corridors and lists bank account, cash pickup and wallet as general options | No current Pakistan fee schedule found | LuLu Money ↗ |
| Emirates NBD (DirectRemit) | National bank, CBUAE register no. 01.01.01.003.1963.02 (CBUAE ↗) | Bank account, “Coverage: All banks”; limit PKR 1,000,000 per transfer | “Fee: Zero” | Emirates NBD ↗ |
| Emirates Islamic (QuickRemit) | National bank, CBUAE register no. 01.01.02.031.1976.02 (CBUAE ↗) | “Free Bank transfers to any Bank account in Pakistan”; IBAN required | Free | Emirates Islamic ↗ |
Source: CBUAE Register as of August 2026 and the providers’ own pages · checked 2026-09-28
Al Ansari’s Key Facts Statement also lists Pakistan among its “International Bank Account Transfers (Without Back-end Charges)”, with service charges from AED 0.00 to AED 25.24 plus 5% VAT. Al Ansari asks for a “Passport with valid UAE visa or GCC ID or Seaman ID”. We could not verify other providers, including UAE branches of Pakistani banks. For current terms, ask the provider.
On the Pakistan side. PRI (the Pakistan Remittance Initiative of the Ministry of Finance, SBP and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis) lists 23 banks ↗ with their home remittance complaint contacts. It does not publish which UAE provider pays through which Pakistani bank.
What the receiver needs to give you
- Bank: the full name of the receiver’s bank
- SWIFT/BIC: the bank’s code (see SWIFT codes of Pakistani banks)
- IBAN: the 24-character IBAN (International Bank Account Number)
- Account title: exactly as on the account
Al Ansari asks for the “Beneficiary name, Bank account number/IBAN Number, Branch name” for a bank transfer. For cash pickup, it asks for beneficiary details “same as per the valid ID”. The receiver collects with photo ID, such as a CNIC (Computerised National Identity Card), and the reference number. For a wallet, ask for the wallet’s registered mobile number. See Wallets.
Bank codes: Meezan Bank, HBL, UBL, MCB Bank, Allied Bank.
SBP publishes a daily M2M revaluation rate ↗ for USD/PKR. Its daily M2M rate sheet also has an AED row, compiled from the USD/PKR rate and the AED/USD cross rate. SBP issues these rates for banks “to revalue their books daily on Mark-to-Market basis”. It is a reference, not the rate your provider converts at. PRI says the sender should confirm the rate with the bank or exchange company at the time of sending.
SBP’s What’s New list records that on September 25, 2026 the Governor unveiled the Pasban Remittance Reward Scheme “with Rs16 billion in annual prizes”. The terms below are as reported by APP and Dawn; we did not find the official terms and conditions.
More: Remittances reached US$41.6bn in FY26; Pasban rewards start October 1.
Warning SBP’s public poster (the copy we found is hosted on a bank’s website) says transfer of foreign currency “through Hawala/Hundi operators is illegal”. It advises using “only State Bank authorized banks and exchange companies”, keeping the “system generated official receipt”, and reporting illegal operators to the FIA at complaints@fia.gov.pk.
Give the receiver the transaction reference number. They can track it with the paying bank:
In Pakistan, a complaint goes to the paying bank first. PRI’s call centre is +9221-111-727-774 (8:30 AM to 5:00 PM PKT, Monday to Friday), and PRI lists ↗ each bank’s complaint email. If the bank does not respond within 45 days, SBP’s Sunwai portal points to the Banking Mohtasib Pakistan. For a problem with the sending side, contact the UAE provider; Al Ansari’s call centre is 600 54 6000.
On the Pakistan side, qualifying remittances of US$200 or more must stay free for sender and beneficiary. The UAE provider sets its own fee: Emirates NBD lists DirectRemit to Pakistan at zero fee, and Al Ansari charges nothing on bank transfers and cash pickups above AED 740.
Yes, where the provider offers cash pickup. Al Ansari states cash pickup in Pakistan. The receiver needs photo ID and the reference number.
The provider’s own rate. SBP’s M2M rates, including AED, are for banks’ revaluation and are only a reference.
US$8,806.9 million, as reported by APP from SBP data, second after Saudi Arabia.