Punjab Province

Lahore | ReNews Pakistan
Private housing societies in Lahore have until August 31, 2026 to upload their complete property purchase and sale records to the Housing Societies Management System (HSMS), as Punjab moves towards a digital system aimed at making property ownership easier to verify and reducing fraud.
The deadline has attracted attention on social media, where several property pages are describing it as a major change for buyers and investors. However, the August 31 deadline applies mainly to housing societies for completing the transfer of their records to the digital system.
For property buyers and sellers in Lahore, the more important change has already taken effect. According to a public notice displayed by the Lahore Development Authority (LDA), a Property Certificate has been required for property transactions in Lahore housing schemes since July 1, 2026.
Under the new system, the Property Certificate serves as official proof linked to property ownership records. The move is intended to reduce dependence on traditional files and make it easier to check whether the person selling a property is recorded as its owner.
Private housing societies have been directed to place their purchase and sale records on HSMS by August 31. Reports on the government directive say societies that fail to comply may face action under the LDA Act, 1975.
The Punjab Land Records Authority also describes its Green Property Certificate as an official document used to verify the ownership and legal status of a property.
For buyers, the change means that relying only on a property file, allotment letter or a dealer's claim may no longer be enough. Before making a payment, buyers should check the status of the housing scheme and confirm that the property can be verified through the official digital record.
LDA currently provides separate online sections for approved, illegal and regular housing schemes, along with tools for checking property and application status.
The digitalisation drive could become particularly important in Lahore's property market, where disputes over ownership, duplicate files and incomplete society records have long remained a concern for buyers.
With the August 31 deadline approaching, the key question will be how many private housing societies complete their digital records on time and what action authorities take against schemes that remain outside the system.

Lahore | ReNews Pakistan
The Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) has issued new billing guidelines for restaurants, hotels, coffee shops and food chains across Punjab in a move aimed at improving tax transparency and ensuring customers receive proper receipts.
Under the new instructions, restaurants, food chains and coffee shops will be required to display the guidelines prominently at their premises.
The PRA has advised customers to always demand a digital receipt after making payment at restaurants, hotels or other food outlets.
According to the authority, every digital receipt must carry a PRA invoice number and QR code, allowing customers to verify that the transaction has been properly recorded.
Customers have also been asked to report restaurants and other food businesses that refuse to accept digital or card payments.
The PRA has already prohibited restaurants and hotels from issuing kitchen orders, unpaid bills, pre bills or temporary bills to customers instead of proper tax invoices.
The new measures are intended to improve documentation of restaurant transactions, strengthen tax compliance and provide customers with greater transparency when paying their bills.

Gujranwala : ReNews Pakistan
The Punjab government has directed authorities to accelerate work on Gujranwala’s master plan as part of efforts to manage the city’s growing population, expanding residential and commercial development, and rapidly urbanizing peripheral areas.
Under the initiative, the scope of town planning will not remain confined to the central city but will also be extended to Gujranwala’s outlying areas to ensure more organized urban growth.
On the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Housing Secretary Noor-ul-Amin Mengal has assigned key responsibilities to the newly appointed Director General of the Gujranwala Development Authority (GDA), Sajjad Ahmed, directing him to advance work on the city’s master plan effectively and at a faster pace.
The housing secretary specifically instructed the authority to expand town planning coverage to suburban and peripheral areas so that future urban growth can be aligned with projected requirements for housing, commercial activity, industry, transport and other civic facilities.
The need for a comprehensive master plan has become increasingly important because the Gujranwala Development Authority is responsible for a wide range of town planning functions, including the approval of private housing schemes and land subdivisions, regulation of land use, action against illegal housing schemes and preparation of broader urban development plans.
Under GDA regulations, approval for a private housing scheme may generally be granted only where the land is designated for residential or peri-urban use under the relevant master plan or another approved land-use plan.
Organized land-use planning has remained a longstanding challenge in Gujranwala. A previous special audit report by the Auditor General of Pakistan had pointed out that the absence of a clearly defined master plan and incomplete demarcation under the peri-urban structure plan created difficulties in determining actual land uses and the location of private housing schemes.
The report had also highlighted the need for clearer classification of residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and peri-urban land.
In recent years, the Punjab government has also prioritized the issue at the provincial level. In January 2025, the provincial government approved in principle the establishment of the Punjab Special Planning Authority as part of broader efforts to curb illegal housing schemes and introduce a stronger system for residential, commercial and agricultural zoning and district-level land-use planning.
According to the provincial policy framework, district land-use and zoning plans are also envisaged to undergo periodic reviews every four years.
Gujranwala is among the districts where land-use and zoning planning work had already been undertaken. Information reported in January 2025 indicated that land-use and zoning plans had been prepared for 32 districts of Punjab, with Gujranwala among the districts where the plan had also received approval.
These plans were designed to guide urban development over roughly the next two decades by defining residential, commercial and industrial zones and limiting the uncontrolled conversion of agricultural land into residential developments.
The issue also has direct implications for Gujranwala’s property market. GDA records include separate lists of approved private housing schemes, illegal housing projects and unapproved land subdivisions, underscoring the need to link future urban expansion with formal zoning and approval mechanisms.
Effective implementation of the new master plan could help determine where future residential development should take place, which areas may be designated for commercial and industrial activity, what land should remain protected for agricultural use, and where new housing schemes and infrastructure projects should be encouraged.
Against this backdrop, the directive to extend town planning to Gujranwala’s peripheral areas represents more than an exercise in updating the city’s development map. It is aimed at bringing future urban expansion, land use and real estate development under a more structured and coordinated planning framework.