ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s government has removed the sales tax on women’s hygiene products and contraceptives, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Sunday, stressing that the government aims to provide relief to the masses through such measures.
Pakistani women’s rights organizations and activists have long led the campaign to abolish “period tax” in the country. This refers to the additional charge the government adds to the retail price of women’s hygiene products, such as sanitary pads, tampons and other related items.
According to UNICEF, additional tax can add 40 percent to the retail price of sanitary pads in Pakistan, making them inaccessible for many women and girls, especially in rural and impoverished communities.
“Regarding women, it was a massive demand in this country to end the pink tax,” Tarar told lawmakers during a session in the National Assembly on Sunday.
“Today, the tax on their hygiene products has been reduced to 0 percent from 18 percent.”
The information minister said population is one of the serious challenges facing the country, adding that the government had also waived the tax on contraceptives from 18 percent to 0 percent for the upcoming fiscal year.
“So, this budget is a relief budget,” Tarar said. “This budget is a budget for an era where we are entering a period of prosperity.”
Mahwari Justice, a prominent organization in Pakistan dedicated to fighting for menstrual equity and women’s reproductive rights, appreciated the gesture.
“This is a welcome development for millions of menstruators across Pakistan,” Mahwari Justice said on its Instagram account on Friday.
Pakistani women’s rights activist Mahnoor Omer, who fought against taxes on menstrual products and was named among TIME magazine’s ‘Women of the Year’ for 2026 earlier this year, also appreciated the gesture.
“Thank you so much for the support,” Omer thanked people on Instagram for acknowledging her efforts to fight the period tax in Pakistan.
