Banks Asked to Provide Payment Facility to Customers Via DIRBS

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has advised all commercial and microfinance banks to start the facility for customers to pay their duties and levy for registration and unblocking of mobile phones at their branches located within the territorial jurisdiction of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit- Baltistan. The banking regulator issued these directives in a view to ensure that taxpayers have the facility to pay the duty/levy of the mobile handsets through OTC and ATMs facility under the Device Identification Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS). The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) in coordination with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) developed the DIRBS system across Pakistan for the purpose of generating challans/Payment System ID (PSID) and its payment through banks’ Alternate Delivery Channel (ADC) Over-the-Counter (OTC) facility and ATMs. Now, PTA intends to roll out the DIRBS system across AJK and GB regions on similar lines for the convenience of the general public intending to register their mobile devices, the notification issued by the SBP stated. Furthermore, necessary instructions by the banks may also be issued to concerned branches to depute officials who are well-versed with the DIRBS system, the notification further stated.