Throughout the province, the Punjab government has implemented a significant increase in court fees and stamp duties, ranging from 500% to 1000%.
Increase In Court Fees
The fee for court permits for civil and criminal petitions has increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 500 in accordance with the Punjab Finance Act of 2024.
The cost of requesting court records has also increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 500, and the charge for transferring cases has increased from Rs. 5 to Rs. 500.
The fee for submitting a memorandum of appeal, claim, or supervision has increased from Rs. 15 to Rs. 500.
Civil & Criminal Counsel in Punjab Govt.
Civil and criminal counsel, who previously paid Rs. 2 per ticket, are now required to pay Rs. 100. Tickets that were previously priced between Rs. 5 and Rs. 15 have been increased to Rs. 500.
Ticket prices have increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 500 in instances where the claimant’s quantity remains undetermined.
Clients will now be required to pay Rs.1,000 for a ticket, which significantly impacts their capacity to file claims under applicable consumer laws.
The cost of tickets has increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 15 for requests related to rent determination or eviction, resulting in a new rate of Rs. 500.
Additionally, the cost of stamp papers for affidavits has increased from Rs. 100 to Rs. 300.
Stamp Papers Prices
Stamp papers for sale agreements were previously priced between Rs. 1,200 and Rs. 3,000; however, they are now fixed at Rs. 3,000.
The cost of stamp papers for other declarations has increased to Rs. 500. As opposed to the previous range of Rs. 100 to Rs. 200. The stamp duty for divorce papers has increased from Rs. 100 to Rs. 1,000.
The cost of certified reproductions of court documents has increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 100 per page.
Fees for claims of less than Rs. 50 have increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 100, while those of Rs. 50 and above have increased from Rs. 5 to Rs. 500.
Cost Of Returning Original Documents
The cost of returning original documents has increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 100, and the cost of procuring certified copies of court records has increased from Rs. 2 to Rs. 100 per page.
The Rawalpindi Bar Association, which is under the leadership of former President Malik Jawad Khalid, has submitted a resolution that condemns the Punjab Finance Act of 2024.
The lawyer community has issued a demand to the Punjab government to promptly reverse this decision, stating that they will protest if their demands are not met.
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