# New Toshakhana rules: officials get 30 days to hand in gifts, auctions go public and on camera

Source: Searchable (https://searchable.pk/news/politics/new-toshakhana-rules-officials-get-30-days-to-hand-in-gifts-auctions-go-public-a)
Type: News article
Author: Searchable Editorial
Published: 23 Sept 2026
Updated: 25 Sept 2026
Retrieved: 30 Sept 2026

> The Cabinet Division notified the Toshakhana Management and Regulation Rules 2026 on Wednesday. Officials and their families are barred from bidding, and proceeds fund girls' schooling.

The Cabinet Division notified the **Toshakhana Management and Regulation Rules 2026** on Wednesday, rewriting how gifts received by Pakistani public office holders from foreign dignitaries are valued, deposited and sold.

Four changes matter.

## 1. Officials mostly cannot keep gifts

The rules discourage the retention of gifts by officials generally. The **president and prime minister** remain able to retain gifts. Employees in **grades 1 to 4** may keep cash awards under specified conditions. For everyone else, the gift goes to the Toshakhana.

## 2. Thirty days to deposit

An official has **30 days** to deposit a gift. Where a gift arrives separately from the visit, the window is **60 days**. For gifts received on a foreign visit, the 30 days run **from the date of return**. Failure to deposit within the period opens the way to a complaint in court.

## 3. Valuation is taken out of the recipient's hands

Market value is assessed by the **Federal Board of Revenue** together with **registered valuers**. If two valuations differ by more than **25 percent**, a **third valuer's assessment is final**. Artificial intelligence may be used as a reference tool in valuation, not as the decision. Weapons are valued by **Pakistan Ordnance Factories, Wah**.

## 4. Auctions are public, filmed, and closed to insiders

Auctions are to be held **at least once and normally twice a year**. **Government officials and their family members are barred from bidding.** Media are to be given access for live coverage. Items of cultural, historical or diplomatic sensitivity are exempt from sale. Proceeds are earmarked for **girls' education in underdeveloped areas**.

## Why this exists

The Toshakhana, literally the treasure house, has been the subject of a decade of litigation in Pakistan, most visibly over gifts retained at assessed values that later sold for many times more. The two structural weaknesses in the old procedure were that the recipient influenced the valuation and that insiders could buy at auction. The 2026 rules address both directly: an independent valuation chain with a tie-breaker, and a bar on officials and their families bidding.

What the rules do not do is set a headline retention threshold in the notification, which is what most previous reform attempts turned on.

## What it means for a reader

Nothing changes for a private citizen, but two things become visible that were not before. Auctions are to be filmed and open to the media, so the gap between an assessed value and a hammer price becomes a public number rather than a court document. And auction proceeds are now tagged to a named purpose, which makes the total checkable against spending.

For the tax treatment of a gift you receive yourself, which is a separate question entirely, our [income tax calculator](/tools/tax/income-tax-calculator) works off the current FBR slabs.

## Frequently asked questions

**How long do officials have to deposit a Toshakhana gift?**

Thirty days, extended to 60 days where the gift arrives separately. For gifts received during a foreign visit the 30 days run from the date of return.

**Can government officials bid at Toshakhana auctions?**

No. Under the Toshakhana Management and Regulation Rules 2026, government officials and their family members are barred from participating in the auctions, which are to be open to live media coverage.

## Sources

- Pakistan tightens Toshakhana rules under new 2026 regulations (ARY News): https://arynews.tv/pakistan-tightens-toshakhana-rules-under-new-2026-regulations
- Govt discourages officials from accepting gifts from foreign dignitaries under new Toshakhana rules (Geo News): https://www.geo.tv/latest/683352-govt-discourages-officials-from-accepting-gifts-under-new-toshakhana-rules
- Pakistan tightens Toshakhana rules, orders public auction of gifts (Daily Pakistan): https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/23-Sep-2026/pakistan-tightens-toshakhana-rules-orders-public-auction-of-gifts
- Cabinet Division: Toshakhana procedures (Cabinet Division, Government of Pakistan): https://cabinet.gov.pk/SiteImage/Misc/files/TOSHAKHANA/Procedures/2023Procedure%20for%20Acceptance%20and%20Disposal%20of%20Gifts.pdf

How to cite: "New Toshakhana rules: officials get 30 days to hand in gifts, auctions go public and on camera", Searchable, 25 Sept 2026, https://searchable.pk/news/politics/new-toshakhana-rules-officials-get-30-days-to-hand-in-gifts-auctions-go-public-a