Pakistan and IMF Begin Fourth Review Talks in Karachi
IMF and Pakistani officials began talks in Karachi on September 23 for the fourth review of the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility, with Pakistan on track to meet six of seven quantitative targets ahead of the review.
Photo by Werner Pfennig / Pexels
Pakistani and International Monetary Fund officials began the next round of review talks on September 23, 2026, with the IMF delegation holding technical-level discussions with State Bank of Pakistan officials in Karachi. The talks cover the fourth review of Pakistan's $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the third review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangement.
How the review process works
The negotiations are structured in two phases: an initial technical-level phase, followed by policy-level talks expected to begin roughly a week later. The full process is expected to run for about two weeks. A successful review triggers the release of the next loan tranche and effectively serves as an international seal of approval that Pakistan is meeting the conditions attached to its program — a signal that matters not just for direct IMF disbursement but for how other lenders and investors price Pakistani risk more broadly.
Where Pakistan stands ahead of the review
Pakistan is reported to be on track to meet six of the seven quantitative performance criteria (QPCs) under the program. The outstanding item relates to the cumulative number of new tax returns from first-time filers — the program set a target of 750,000 new filers by March 2026 and one million by June 2026, but the relevant data had not been publicly disclosed as of this review's start.
What else is on the table
The IMF mission is also expected to examine proposed amendments to Pakistan's Sovereign Wealth Fund law, introduced in the Senate as part of governance and fiscal-safeguard reforms tied to the program's broader requirements. We cover those amendments in more detail separately.
Why this matters beyond the loan itself
IMF program compliance has downstream effects that show up across other coverage on this site: fiscal targets set under the program directly shape budget choices (see our federal budget explainer), and progress — or setbacks — feed into how international markets view Pakistan's broader balance-of-payments position, covered in our remittances and reserves piece.
Build Better Pakistan's Economy Desk is tracking the IMF review talks and will update this piece as the technical and policy-level discussions conclude.
This article is part of our Economy coverage — Inflation, growth, trade and the everyday cost of living across Pakistan.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What review is Pakistan undergoing with the IMF right now?
- Talks that began September 23, 2026, cover the fourth review of Pakistan's $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the third review of the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangement.
- Is Pakistan on track to pass the review?
- Pakistan is on track to meet six of seven quantitative performance criteria ahead of the review. The seventh — the number of new tax returns from first-time filers — has an undisclosed status as of this writing, with the program requiring one million new filers by June 2026.
Related Reading
Aurangzeb Opens Islamabad Round of IMF Talks, With $1.2 Billion Riding on It
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb held a virtual kick-off meeting with IMF mission chief Iva Petrova on September 30 to formally open the policy-level round of Pakistan's fourth EFF and third RSF reviews, with roughly $1.2 billion in combined financing on the table if the talks succeed.
BBP Economy Desk · September 30, 2026 · 4 min
Shehbaz Becomes First Pakistani PM to Open London Stock Exchange Trading
Shehbaz Sharif opened a trading session at the London Stock Exchange on September 29 and met executives from JPMorgan, Barclays, Citi, BlackRock and Rothschild & Co, pitching Pakistan as a destination for foreign capital weeks after its $3 billion Eurobond drew almost $6 billion in orders.
BBP Economy Desk · September 29, 2026 · 4 min
10,000 Civil Servants Must Declare Assets by October 30 Under New IMF Benchmark
As the IMF mission opened fourth EFF and third RSF review talks on September 29, Islamabad confirmed that roughly 10,000 federal civil servants must digitally file asset declarations by October 30, with selected details made public by December 31 — but not the full picture.
BBP Economy Desk · September 29, 2026 · 4 min