Did you know? Pakistan is in the top 10 countries with the highest numbers of freelancers. However, these freelancers are yet to have a proper way of receiving online payments. For months now, Pakistanis have been demanding Paypal to come to Pakistan. A Pakistani resident can make an account on the app but without making use of all its benefits as it’s not getting approved. However, here is how you can set up a PayPal account in Pakistan.
What Is PayPal?
PayPal is an American multinational financial technology company which discards the traditional way of sending and receiving money and makes online payments much safer and convenient. You can link your bank account, credit card or debit card to your PayPal account and send money to anyone or make online purchases from affiliated stores. All this without the hassle of always keeping your debit/credit cards handy!
Why PayPal?
According to reports, Pakistan has the 4th largest freelancer community in the world. Plus, freelancers brought in $216.788 million by providing their services in the first half of fiscal year 2021-2022 (Digital Pakistan). Most of these freelancers use platforms like Fiver and Upwork where they exchange their skills with international clients and get paid in international currencies. International clients trust PayPal and would prefer doing business through it. Thus, you can imagine how having a PayPal account would provide huge benefits to Pakistani freelancers.
With it, the process of receiving & withdrawing money would become much more efficient. Plus, its transaction fee is as low as 2.9% in comparison to other alternatives.
What’s Taking So Long?
PayPal is currently available in more than 200 countries, including some that have a smaller population than Pakistan. Why is that?
Pakistan tried its luck in bringing PayPal to the country back in 2015, then again in 2019, but, to no avail. In February of 2022, it was finally announced by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication in the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication that PayPal has refused to introduce its services in Pakistan pertaining to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) restrictions. FATF does not support its payments in Pakistan. Hence, the multinational financial technology company might not extend its services to Pakistan for the next 2 years.
But Wait, There’s Hope!
While we can’t enjoy PayPal in Pakistan, we have a workable solution for you!
Payoneer, a similar service to PayPal, serves as a viable alternative to the latter. Plus, its services are also available in Pakistan. Through Payoneer, you can either opt for an e-wallet or receive money directly into your local account. For more details, click here.
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Sources used in this article include Business Recorder, Start Up Pakistan, The News International, ProPakistani, and Digital Pakistan.
