Pakistan has appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

According to the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

It is reported that Pakistan prohibits data transfers to any country that it does not recognise, including Israel, Taiwan, Somaliland, Nagorno, Karabakh, Transnistria, Abkhazia, Northern Cyprus, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, South Ossetia and Armenia. This list may change from time to time. Additionally, data transfers to India must be justifiable by the transferor.

Under Sections 16 and 26 of the Guidelines on Outsourcing Arrangements, for outsourcing any services from an entity outside the country, it is mandatory for the banks in Pakistan to obtain the State Bank of Pakistan's prior approval. The request for such approval includes disclosures relating to data that may be transferred offshore.

Art. 4 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act prohibits the transfer of data without the authorisation of the data owner.

Pakistan is not a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

The Copyright Ordinance of 1962 establishes a clear framework of copyright exceptions based on the fair dealing model, allowing the lawful use of copyrighted works by others without prior permission. Section 57, introduced through the 2000 amendment, outlines these exceptions, which include uses such as research or private study, criticism or review, and the public reading or recitation of reasonable excerpts from published literary or dramatic works, among others.

Copyright is not adequately enforced online in Pakistan. It is reported that piracy remains widespread, including with respect to digital content and software. Furthermore, numerous cable operators provide pirated content and litigants with experience in these tribunals raise concerns over the lack of capacity, inconsistency of rulings, nominal fines, and a general lack of expertise among tribunal judges.

Pakistan has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Pakistan has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Pakistan lacks a comprehensive regime for the protection of trade secrets.

It is reported that there is no obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in Pakistan to deliver telecom services to end users. However, it is practised in both the mobile and fixed sectors based on commercial agreements.

Pakistan is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II).

In June 2021, the Pakistani National Tariff Commission imposed a definitive anti-dumping duty for a period of five years on imports of phthalic anhydride (HS code: 291735) from China, Chinese Taipei, the Republic of Korea and Russia. This product is used in the production of flexible PVC products such as cables. The duty imposed on imports originating from China is 11.12%, from the Republic of Korea ranges from 9.57% to 14.82%, from Chinese Taipei ranges from 14.94% to 24.61%, and from Russia is 16.31%.

According to Art. 24 of the Public Procurement Rules, procuring agencies are required to prioritise domestic suppliers or contractors when evaluating and comparing bids against international competitors. It is reported that a price preference of up to 25% is applied in all public procurement processes, depending on the level of domestic value-added content. The maximum preference is granted when at least 35% of the value added originates domestically