Punjab E-Taxi Scheme — How to Apply for an Electric Taxi on Interest-Free Installments
Last updated: October 22, 2026 · 5 min read
✓ Fact-checked by: Editorial Team
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Almost every message I receive about electric cars in Pakistan is secretly the same message: “I drive someone else’s car all day. Will the government ever help me own my own?” So let us skip the long introductions. Here are the real questions drivers ask about the “e-car scheme” — and the honest answers, in the order you ask them.
“First tell me honestly — is there an e-car scheme for a common man?”
No — not for personal use, and not today. There is no federal or provincial scheme where an individual can apply for a subsidized electric car for himself or his family, and no such portal exists. Anyone who says “pay me and I will get you an e-car from the scheme” is lying to you.
What does exist at the federal level is PAVE, the Pakistan Accelerated Vehicle Electrification Scheme, under the New Energy Vehicles Policy 2025-30. According to Dawn newspaper, it carries a total subsidy plan of Rs 100.36 billion over five years for electric bikes, rickshaws, loaders, cars, buses and trucks. But read the fine print with me: its first phases cover only two-wheelers and three-wheelers. The car part is a plan for the coming years — a policy direction, not an application form you can fill today.
“Then what is this e-taxi everyone is talking about?”
That one is real. The Punjab E-Taxi Scheme is a pilot project of the Government of Punjab, starting in Lahore with 1,100 electric taxis. Out of these, 1,000 are for fleet owners and 100 are for individual drivers — and among the individual drivers, 70 seats are for men and 30 are reserved for women drivers, according to the Punjab Transport Department and PITB. That reservation matters: this government is openly inviting women into professional driving with vehicle ownership. Applications are made on one official portal only: e-taxi.punjab.gov.pk.
“What will it actually cost me? Give me numbers, not slogans.”
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Vehicle type | Electric taxi (car) |
| Maximum vehicle cost | Rs 6.5 million (Rs 65 lakh) |
| Markup / interest | 0 percent |
| Installment period | 5 years |
| Your equity (down payment share) | 30 percent of vehicle cost in total |
| Government pays of that equity | 50 percent for men, 60 percent for women |
| Pilot city | Lahore |
| Total taxis in pilot | 1,100 |
| Apply at | e-taxi.punjab.gov.pk |
Now the equity, in plain words, because this is where most people get confused. The down-payment side of the car is 30 percent of its price. You do not pay all of that yourself: the Government of Punjab pays half of that equity for a male applicant, and 60 percent of it for a female applicant. The remaining price is paid in installments over 5 years at zero percent markup. For a working driver, this is the difference between driving another man’s car for the rest of his life and owning his own.
“And the petrol saving — real, or just talk?”
Real, and for a taxi driver it is the biggest number in this whole article. An electric taxi has no petrol or diesel bill, and electric cars need far less maintenance than petrol cars — no engine oil, no tuning, far fewer moving parts. A petrol driver’s daily earning leaks away at the pump before he reaches home. An e-taxi driver’s earning stays with him. Think like an owner from day one, and charging becomes part of your planning: charging infrastructure grows with pilots like this, and an electric car can also be charged at home or depot points on normal supply with the proper charger.
“Am I even eligible?”
According to the official portal, an individual applicant should be at least 21 years old, hold a valid computerized driving license, and have no bank defaults — your name should not appear as a defaulter in the banking system. Fleet owners apply in their own category for the fleet portion. Every application, individual and fleet, goes through the same official portal and nowhere else.
“I heard the registration already closed. So what do I do now?”
You heard correctly — the first phase’s registration has been reported closed, and new rounds open on the portal when the government announces them. So your correct action today is preparation, not payment: keep your CNIC and driving license in order, keep your banking record clean, and keep checking e-taxi.punjab.gov.pk for the new round’s announcement. The driver who is ready on the first day is the one who gets in. The driver who pays an agent “to arrange it early” gets nothing but poorer.
“I live outside Lahore. Anything for me?”
Not in this round — the pilot is Lahore only, all 1,100 taxis. Expansion to other cities depends on how the pilot performs and on government announcements. Your city is not in this phase, but a driver who watches the official portal will be the first to know the day it opens. And if the driver in your house is actually a student, send him to my Punjab E-Bike Scheme guide instead — the two schemes are for different people, and mixing them up wastes everyone’s time.
“Last question — the 30 seats for women. Real or decoration?”
Real, and written into the scheme: among the 100 individual taxis, 30 are for women drivers, and the government pays 60 percent of the equity for female applicants, according to the official portal. Not a rumor, not a speech — policy, with numbers.
So here is the whole truth in two lines. No personal e-car scheme exists today, whatever the forwards claim — but for a driver in Lahore, a genuine door has opened: zero markup, five years, and the government standing beside you on the equity. Doors like this reward the prepared. Keep your documents ready, keep your eyes on the official portal, and when the next round opens, walk through it yourself — no agent takes a cut of a door that is free to enter.
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