Court Fees Structure in Pakistan (2026): 15+ Provisions & Slab Rates Every Advocate Must Know

Introduction

Every day in the District Courts, even senior practitioners occasionally trip over one small but costly mistake: a wrong court fee calculation. Sometimes an ad valorem fee is affixed where a fixed fee was required, sometimes the difference between Schedule I and Schedule II gets confused, and sometimes advocates aren’t aware of the current exemption limit. The result is always the same: an office objection, a delayed admission, wasted client time, and an avoidable embarrassment for a young advocate.

This confusion is understandable. The entire court fees structure in Pakistan is built on a colonial-era statute, the Court Fees Act, 1870, which every province has since modified through its own finance acts and amendments. In Sindh, this position has been further updated through the Sindh Finance Act, 1990, and is directly shaped by landmark case law such as PLD 1990 K-178.

This guide breaks down the court fees structure in Pakistan, with a specific focus on Sindh District Courts step by step: which provisions apply to which type of suit, the difference between ad valorem and fixed court fees, current slab rates, the maximum limit, the exemption threshold, and a practical suit-value-wise court fee table you can use directly in daily practice.

What Is Court Fee and Which Law Governs It?

A court fee is a statutory levy paid to the court at the time of filing a plaint, application, appeal, or memorandum in civil (and certain criminal) proceedings. It is paid through a court fee stamp or e-stamp ticket, and without it, no plaint or application is treated as properly instituted before a competent court under Order VII Rule 11(c) CPC; a plaint can be rejected if the prescribed court fee is not paid.

Proper court fee calculation is essential right from the first stage of instituting a civil suit as covered in detail in our guide on Civil Procedure in Pakistan: From Institution of Suit to Final Judgement. Affixing the court fee stamp to the plaint is itself a mandatory step at the institution stage.

The governing law on court fees in Pakistan is:

• The Court Fees Act, 1870 (Act VII of 1870), the federal-level parent statute that extends to the whole of Pakistan, subsequently amended locally by each province through its own finance acts.
• The Sindh Finance Act, 1990, which revised the ad valorem slabs and maximum limit applicable in Sindh.
• The Suits Valuation Act, 1887, which links the valuation of a suit (for jurisdiction) with the valuation for court fee purposes.
• The West Pakistan Family Courts Act, 1964, Section 17, which prescribes a nominal, concessional court fee for family suits, in place of the general Court Fees Act regime.

Two Types of Court Fees: Ad Valorem vs. Fixed

Schedule I and Schedule II of the Court Fees Act provide two fundamentally different mechanisms for computing court fee:

1. Ad Valorem Court Fee (Schedule I)

This fee is calculated as a percentage of the monetary value/subject-matter of the suit. The higher the value, the higher the fee, subject to a maximum cap. It applies to money suits, recovery suits, property disputes, and declaratory suits with consequential relief.

2. Fixed Court Fee (Schedule II)

This is a flat, predetermined amount that is independent of the suit’s value, whether the claim is Rs. 10,000 or Rs. 10 lakh. It applies to injunction applications, simple declaratory suits (without consequential relief), custody petitions, and several procedural applications.

Understanding this distinction is essential, since applying the wrong schedule is one of the most common reasons for an office objection at the time of filing.

Sindh Ad Valorem Court Fee Slabs

In Sindh District Courts, under Schedule I Article 1 read with the Sindh Finance Act, 1990, ad valorem court fee is calculated on the following slabs:

Maximum limit: No matter how high the value of the suit, the ad valorem court fee can never exceed Rs. 15,000. This cap follows the judgment in PLD 1990 K-178, which held that the maximum court fee is to be fixed in accordance with the schedule prevailing before the amendment introduced by the Sindh Finance Act, 1990.

Suit-Value-Wise Court Fee Table (Sindh District Courts)

Here’s a practical reference table showing the proper court fee applicable at different suit amounts useful as a quick reference for daily drafting:

(Note: Rates between these brackets follow the same slab-wise progression above and increase incrementally. Advocates should always verify the exact figure against the current court fee ready-reckoner available at the relevant court’s stamp/treasury counter before affixing the fee, since minor administrative revisions can occur.)

The Exemption Limit: No Court Fee Up to Rs. 50,000

One frequently overlooked provision is that the exemption threshold in Sindh has been raised from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 50,000. This means:

No court fee is payable in criminal cases, and in civil cases where the value does not exceed Rs. 50,000.

This exemption is a significant relief, particularly for those filing petty civil claims, small recovery suits, and low-value family/maintenance matters, since such suits can now be instituted without any court fee at all.

Provisions Under Which Court Fee Applies: Section 7 Categories

Section 7 of the Court Fees Act, 1870 is the core provision that determines which suit types attract ad valorem fee and how their value is to be computed. It covers the following major categories:

Section 7(i) — Money Suits. Suits for money, including damages, compensation, or periodically payable sums; fee is based on the amount claimed.

Example: a suit for recovery of Rs. 3,00,000 on a dishonoured cheque.

Section 7(ii) — Maintenance & Annuities. Fee is based on the value of the subject-matter, which is deemed to be ten times the annual amount claimed under the law.

Example: a suit claiming Rs. 20,000 monthly maintenance; the annual figure (Rs. 2,40,000) is multiplied by ten for fee purposes.

Section 7(iii) — Movable Property with Market Value. Fee is based on the market value as of the date the plaint is presented.

Example: a suit for recovery of a specific vehicle with a known resale value.

Section 7(iv) — Six Special Categories. Covers declaratory decree with consequential relief, injunction, possession of specific movable property (with no money value), specific performance of contracts, dissolution of partnership with accounts, and cancellation/setting aside of a decree or instrument.

Example: a suit for specific performance of a sale agreement, where the plaintiff has the liberty to state the value of the relief themselves (subject to the court’s power to revise under-valuation).

Section 7(v) & (vi) — Suits Relating to Land. Specific valuation rules for agricultural land and houses/gardens.

Example: a partition suit involving inherited agricultural land.

Section 7(vii) — Interest in Property Comprised in a Mortgage. Suits related to mortgages.

Example: a suit for redemption of a mortgaged property.

Section 7(ix) — Partition Suits. Based on the value of the share claimed.

Example: a co-sharer’s suit for partition of jointly-owned property, fee computed only on their claimed share.

Section 7(x) — Other Suits. Specific categories relating to pre-emption, redemption, and possession.

Example: a suit for pre-emption of agricultural land sold to a stranger.

Section 7(xi) — Landlord-Tenant Suits. Suits relating to delivery of the counterpart of a lease, rent enhancement, or ejectment.

Example: a landlord’s suit to enhance rent of a tenant holding a right of occupancy.

Each category has its own valuation methodology, which is why the first step in drafting a plaint should always be identifying exactly which sub-clause the suit falls under since this determines whether the fee is ad valorem or fixed, and on what basis it is calculated.

Common Mistake: Advocates often confuse the Rs. 50,000 exemption limit with the Rs. 15,000 maximum cap these are two entirely different thresholds. The exemption limit decides whether any fee is payable at all (suits up to Rs. 50,000 pay nothing); the maximum cap decides the ceiling on fee for suits above that (no suit, however high its value, pays more than Rs. 15,000).

Fixed Court Fees Under Schedule II

Under Schedule II, the following common matters attract a flat/fixed fee (exact amounts should be confirmed against the current notification at the district treasury):

• Simple declaratory suits without consequential relief (Article 17)
• Applications for temporary injunction (Section 151/O.39 R.1&2 CPC)
• Memorandum of appeal in certain matters
• Probate of a will and letters of administration
• Powers-of-attorney to institute or defend a suit
• Various miscellaneous applications under the CPC

Special Position: Family Court Suits

Family suits such as khula, dissolution of marriage, custody, maintenance, and dower recovery are governed under Section 17 of the West Pakistan Family Courts Act, 1964, rather than the general Court Fees Act regime. A nominal, concessional court fee applies here, regardless of the amount claimed, but this concession is restricted only to the “plaint,” and does not extend to a memorandum of appeal.

Criminal Cases: No Court Fee

As the current Sindh schedule expressly clarifies, no court fee is payable in criminal cases, regardless of the nature of the complaint. This exemption applies automatically and is not tied to any threshold.

Practical Drafting Checklist for Advocates

Follow this sequence before instituting a plaint to avoid office objections:

1. First identify which sub-clause of Section 7 the suit falls under.
2. Determine whether the applicable fee is ad valorem or fixed.
3. If ad valorem, calculate the rate from the current slab table and always apply the Rs. 15,000 cap.
4. Confirm whether the suit value falls under the Rs. 50,000 exemption limit.
5. Purchase the court fee stamp/e-stamp ticket from the district treasury or designated bank and affix it to the plaint. The complete step-by-step breakdown of this admission process is available in our guide on How to File a Civil Suit for Specific Performance in District Courts.
6. For family, custody, or maintenance suits, separately check the concessional rate under the Family Courts Act.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Conclusion

The court fees structure in Pakistan is a foundational yet often underestimated element of every civil litigation practice. For advocates and law students practicing in Sindh District Courts, it is essential to clearly understand the categories under Section 7, the applicable slab rates, the Rs. 15,000 maximum cap, and the Rs. 50,000 exemption limit not just for compliance, but to save clients both time and cost. Use this guide as a quick reference every time you draft a new suit, to avoid unnecessary office objections.

Have you ever had a plaint objected to over a court fee miscalculation or come across a suit type this guide didn’t cover? Share your experience in the comments below.