# KP health department freezes all hiring, tests and appointment letters in selected districts until further orders

Source: Searchable (https://searchable.pk/news/health/kp-health-department-freezes-all-hiring-tests-and-appointment-letters-in)
Type: News article
Author: Searchable Editorial
Published: 24 Oct 2026
Updated: 24 Oct 2026
Retrieved: 25 Oct 2026

> District health officers and THQ hospitals have been told to stop advertisements, tests, interviews, merit lists and joinings at once. Here is what candidates already in the pipeline should do.

**The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Department has suspended recruitment at health institutions and offices in selected districts "until further orders"**, under a notification [reported by ProPakistani](https://propakistani.pk/2026/10/24/kp-bans-new-hiring-in-health-department/) on Saturday 24 October.

## What is stopped

District Health Officers (DHOs) and Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) hospitals have been told to halt, with immediate effect, every recruitment that is under way or planned. That covers:

- **job advertisements** not yet published or still open,
- **recruitment tests and interviews**,
- **preparation of merit lists**,
- **appointment letters**, the **joining** of candidates already selected, and **new postings**.

The notification warns that officers will be held responsible for any breach. It does not, as reported, name the districts, give the number of posts involved or say why the freeze was ordered.

## Why it matters

District health offices and THQ hospitals hire doctors, nurses, technicians and support staff across the province, and a freeze at the merit-list or joining stage hits people who have already passed a test. It comes a little over a week after the department sacked 30 doctors over fake PMDC registrations and moved to recover their salaries ([our story](/news/health/kp-health-department-sacks-30-doctors-over-fake-pmdc-registration-will-recover)).

## If you applied for a KP health job

1. **Keep your roll number slip, test result and any merit-list screenshot** safe. A freeze pauses the process; it does not by itself cancel a merit list.
2. **Check your DHO office or THQ notice board** and the department's website for a list of the districts covered.
3. **Do not pay anyone** who offers to get your appointment letter issued during the freeze.
4. **Keep applying elsewhere.** The freeze covers KP health offices in the selected districts only, not federal or other provincial vacancies.

Planning your finances while you wait? Our [salary breakdown calculator](/tools/finance/salary-breakdown-calculator) shows take-home pay on a BPS salary. We will update this story when the department names the districts or lifts the freeze.

## Frequently asked questions

**Has KP banned hiring in the health department?**

Yes. A KP Health Department notification reported on 24 October 2026 suspends advertisements, tests, interviews, merit lists, appointment letters, joinings and postings in selected districts until further orders.

## Sources

- KP Bans New Hiring in Health Department (ProPakistani): https://propakistani.pk/2026/10/24/kp-bans-new-hiring-in-health-department/

How to cite: "KP health department freezes all hiring, tests and appointment letters in selected districts until further orders", Searchable, 24 Oct 2026, https://searchable.pk/news/health/kp-health-department-freezes-all-hiring-tests-and-appointment-letters-in