Shipping to Pakistan from Vietnam

Ship to Pakistan from Vietnam — air freight to Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, sea via Karachi Port, FBR customs support, door-to-door, 100% insurance.

Pakistan-Vietnam trade has grown from $331 million in 2013 to roughly $850 million in 2024, with both governments now negotiating a bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement and talking openly about a $10 billion target. Pakistan exports cotton, yarn, and pharmaceutical products to Vietnam; Vietnam ships back a growing volume of textiles, leather goods, and manufactured products. In July 2025, the two countries’ trade ministries held their fifth Joint Trade Committee meeting in Hanoi specifically to build on this momentum.

For the businesses actually moving goods on this lane — Vietnamese textile suppliers, Pakistani buying agents, sourcing offices comparing fabric options between Ho Chi Minh City and Karachi — that means steady, if not yet high-volume, commercial cargo: yarn and fabric samples, spec sheets, and machinery components.

There’s one thing worth knowing before you ship anything electronic to Pakistan: mobile phones and similar devices sent by courier require a PTA Certificate of Compliance, and unregistered devices get flagged in the national DIRBS system on arrival. It’s a real, verifiable restriction specific to this lane, and we walk you through it before you pack rather than after customs holds your parcel.

Shipping Services to Pakistan

Express Air (4-6 Business Days)

Air freight from Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi into Karachi (KHI), Lahore (LHE), or Islamabad (ISB).

Best for:

Textile and fabric samples for buying trips
Documents and business contracts
Time-sensitive commercial cargo
Personal parcels and gifts

Service features:

4-6 business day door-to-door delivery
Real-time tracking
100% declared-value insurance included

Standard Air (7-12 Business Days)

A more economical option for cargo without a hard deadline.

Best for:

Personal effects, clothing, household goods
Non-urgent commercial samples
Bulk packaged food

Sea Freight (15-25 Days)

Ho Chi Minh City to Karachi Port, Pakistan’s primary maritime gateway.

Best for:

Bulk yarn, fabric, and textile machinery
High-volume commercial inventory
Heavy cargo where cost per kilogram matters most

Service features:

LCL and FCL options
FBR customs clearance handled at Karachi port
The standard route for larger textile-sector shipments

Electronics to Pakistan: The PTA/DIRBS Rule

This is the single most important compliance point on this lane, and it’s specific to Pakistan among our South Asia destinations.

Pakistan’s Device Identification, Registration, and Blocking System (DIRBS), run by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), requires every mobile phone entering the country to carry a registered, GSMA-compliant IMEI. Phones and similar SIM-capable devices sent by post or courier are held at customs unless the shipment carries a PTA Certificate of Compliance (CoC). Devices that aren’t registered through this process can be blocked from Pakistani mobile networks entirely — SIM, calling, and data services will not activate.

What this means practically:

Don’t ship phones, tablets with SIM slots, or similar devices as ordinary cargo. They will be detained pending compliance paperwork.
If you need to send a device commercially, tell us before pickup — we’ll advise on the CoC process and realistic timeline rather than let the shipment sit at Karachi customs.
Other electronics without SIM/cellular capability (laptops, standalone cameras, most consumer electronics) aren’t subject to DIRBS, though normal customs duty still applies.

Shipping any device with SIM or cellular capability to Pakistan? Email info@gatewayexpress.com.vn or call +84 938 373 343 before you pack — this is the one rule on this lane that catches people out.

Pakistan Customs and Duty (FBR)

Regulators you may interact with

Agency	Role
Federal Board of Revenue (FBR)	Customs policy, duty and sales tax collection
Pakistan Customs	Clearance at airports and Karachi port
PTA	Telecom device registration (DIRBS)
DRAP	Drug and pharmaceutical import approval

Duty and tax

Charge	Rate
General Sales Tax (GST)	17% standard rate
Customs duty	Varies by HS code
Regulatory/additional duties	Apply to select categories

Pakistan Customs assesses shipments regardless of declared value in practice — there’s no meaningful blanket exemption for commercial cargo. Commercial shipments above roughly PKR 50,000 in declared value require full goods-declaration (GD) processing rather than simplified clearance.

Document Preparation for South Asian Customs

Pakistan’s customs paperwork runs heavier than most of our other lanes, and this is where our support matters most:

Complete commercial invoices with material composition, HS code, quantity, and per-unit declared value — vague descriptions trigger manual review
Correct HS classification for textiles by fabric type and finished-vs-unfinished status, since Pakistan’s duty structure varies significantly by category
PTA CoC coordination for any SIM-capable device, arranged before the shipment leaves Vietnam
DRAP approval confirmed in advance for any pharmaceutical or medical shipment
Packing lists matching the invoice line for line — mismatches are a leading cause of holds at Karachi

What You Can Ship — and What’s Banned

Allowed

Textile trade goods (the commercial spine of this lane):

Fabric swatches, yarn samples, trim cards
Spec sheets and buying-office documents
Textile machinery parts and spare components
Sample garments for design or quality review

Dry and processed food (Pakistan is an Islamic republic — halal compliance is not optional here):

Confectionery without pork-derived gelatin
Coffee, tea
Instant noodles — halal-certified or vegetarian formulations only
Dried seafood, spices, and seasoning products

Absolutely prohibited

Pork and all pork-derived products — no exceptions
Alcohol — banned for import outside licensed diplomatic/hospitality channels
Narcotics and precursor chemicals
Weapons, firearms, and ammunition without prior permit
Certain religious and political materials deemed objectionable
Counterfeit goods

Restricted

SIM-capable electronics — require PTA Certificate of Compliance (see above)
Pharmaceuticals and medicines — DRAP approval required
Certain plants and agricultural products — phytosanitary clearance needed
Radioactive materials, transmission apparatus, and specified chemicals

How Shipping with Gateway Express Works

Step 1 — Get a quote

Hotline: +84 938 373 343 (also +84 944 247 267)
Zalo / Viber / WhatsApp: message the same number
Email: info@gatewayexpress.com.vn
Online: Request a free quote or contact our team

Step 2 — Pack and prepare paperwork

Pack to our guidelines (shared with the quote)
Provide sender ID, full recipient details, and item-level descriptions
For textile shipments: fabric composition, HS code, and declared value
For any SIM-capable device: flag it immediately so we can advise on PTA CoC

Step 3 — Free door pickup

Free pickup in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi; scheduled pickup in Da Nang, Hai Phong, and 60+ provinces.

Step 4 — Transit and tracking

Tracking code sent by SMS at pickup
Customs milestone updates through transit
We flag documentation gaps proactively before they become holds

Step 5 — Door delivery in Pakistan

Express Air: 4-6 business days
Standard Air: 7-12 business days
Sea Freight: 15-25 days via Karachi

Where We Pick Up and Deliver

Pickup in Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City — all districts
Hanoi — all inner and outer districts
Da Nang, Hai Phong, and 60+ provinces

Delivery in Pakistan

Karachi — largest city, economic and financial center, primary port
Lahore — cultural and commercial capital of Punjab
Islamabad — national capital
Faisalabad, Rawalpindi — regional industrial centers

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does shipping from Vietnam to Pakistan take?

Express Air: 4-6 business days into Karachi, Lahore, or Islamabad. Standard Air: 7-12 business days. Sea Freight: 15-25 days via Karachi Port. Clearance time depends heavily on documentation completeness.

Can I ship a mobile phone to Pakistan?

Only with a PTA Certificate of Compliance. Pakistan’s DIRBS system holds SIM-capable devices at customs unless the IMEI is registered through PTA. Without this, the phone can be blocked from Pakistani networks entirely after arrival. Tell us before pickup if you’re shipping any phone or SIM-capable device.

Can I ship pork products or alcohol?

No, absolutely not. Pakistan is an Islamic republic and bans pork and pork-derived products, plus alcohol, outside narrow licensed channels. This applies to every food category, including confectionery containing pork-derived gelatin.

Why is Vietnam-Pakistan trade growing right now?

Bilateral trade has grown from $331 million (2013) to roughly $850 million (2024), and the two countries are actively negotiating a Preferential Trade Agreement, with officials targeting $10 billion in trade longer-term. Pakistan supplies cotton and yarn; Vietnam supplies textiles and manufactured goods — the trade flows in both directions.

Can I ship textile or fabric samples?

Yes — this is a core commercial category on this lane. Declare fabric type, composition, and per-unit value accurately, and we’ll handle HS classification. This is the single most common commercial shipment we run to Pakistan.

What’s the GST rate on imports?

17% standard rate, applied alongside customs duty that varies by HS code. Pakistan assesses shipments regardless of value in practice — there’s no meaningful automatic exemption for commercial cargo.

Can you ship textile machinery parts?

Yes, most commonly by sea freight given typical weight. We classify by function and confirm any permit requirements before the shipment leaves Vietnam.

Do you deliver outside Karachi?

Yes. We deliver to Lahore, Islamabad, Faisalabad, and Rawalpindi as well as Karachi. Contact us to confirm current routing and timeline for your specific city, especially for less common delivery points.

Do you offer free pickup and insurance?

Yes to both. Free door pickup in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi; 100% declared-value insurance included on every shipment.

Also shipping elsewhere in South Asia? See our guides to shipping to India, shipping to Bangladesh, and shipping to Sri Lanka, or browse all destinations we ship to.

Ready to ship to Pakistan? Get a transparent quote and PTA/customs guidance from Gateway Express.

📞 Hotline: +84 938 373 343 📧 Email: info@gatewayexpress.com.vn 🏢 Office: 72/5 Giai Phong St., Tan Son Nhat Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Your trusted Vietnam-Pakistan shipping partner.