Pakistan Customs collected fifteen billion rupees in revenue from imports from China through the Khunjerab Pass during the year 2025-26. This new figure broke the record. Meanwhile, Pakistan Customs exported goods worth two point eight billion rupees to China and Asian countries via the Khunjerab Pass. This shows how busy the border is.
Wajid Ali, the Pakistan Customs Collector for Gilgit-Baltistan, told Dawn that fourteen point nine three billion rupees in revenue was collected from imports through the Khunjerab Pass at the Sost Dry Port during year twenty-six. In year twenty-five, Pakistan Customs collected thirteen point six seven billion rupees in revenue on imports from China. This shows growth in customs revenue.
Wajid Ali said that exports from Pakistan to China and Asian countries under the Transports Internationaux Routiers system had increased during fiscal year twenty-six. Wajid Ali said that goods worth two point eight billion rupees were exported to China and Asian countries via the Khunjerab Pass during the last fiscal year. This highlights the importance of the TIR system for border trade.
The exported items included goods, artificial beads, brass decorations, garments, rice, cotton printed sheets, leather jackets, carpets, pinnets, potatoes, oranges, milk cream, baskets, motorcycle parts, juice machines, and handicrafts. These items show the diversity of products moving across the border.
Goods worth Rs2.8bn were exported to China and Asian countries.
Wajid Ali said that business through the Khunjerab Pass was running smoothly. He said that the checking of goods from China had been increased. He added that smuggling of goods from China to Pakistan through the Khunjerab Pass had been stopped by a strong system run by Pakistan Customs and the Facilitation Mechanism team.
Ghulam Muhammad, a Customs clearing agent at the Sost Dry Port, told Dawn that exports of goods to China and Central Asian countries had risen. He said that local goods such as cherries, gemstones, handicrafts and other items were being sold for prices in international markets.
Local traders also complained about the difficulties they faced when exporting goods to China through the Khunjerab Pass. They said that unnecessary restrictions and procedures at immigration authorities made it hard for local traders to send shipments.
They demanded that Pakistani authorities discuss the issue with officials and ask for a relaxation of restrictions on Pakistani shipments entering China.
Smuggled goods seized
Meanwhile, Pakistan Customs and the Facilitation Mechanisms Team seized smuggled goods. Contraband worth billions of rupees during several operations. At the time, items valued at Rs72.9 million were sold at auction at the Sost Dry Port.
Mohib Khan, the deputy collector of Pakistan Customs at Sost Port, informed the newspaper Dawn that Import Policy 2022 had for the first time been put into practice at the Sost Dry Port in both letter and spirit. As a result, restricted items were seized.
Month Pakistan Customs stopped two large smuggling attempts that aimed to bring smartphones, Chinese wine and pork meat from China to Pakistan through the Khunjerab Pass. These operations were carried out using intelligence gathering.
The combined value of the seized goods and a confiscated vehicle in the two operations was estimated at about Rs158 million. The confiscated items consisted of 317 smartphones, 3,500 bottles of wine, and 1,500 kilograms of pork meat that had been part of an imported consignment stored at the Sost Dry Port.
