Please refer to BPD Circular No. 21 dated 13-8-2002 and Circular Letter No. 18 dated 25-5-2004 on the captioned subject.

2. Based on the representations received from the banks regarding difficulties being faced by them in delivery of statement of accounts to their account holders, as also to ensure that the customers of the banks receive the periodic statement of accounts regularly, the existing instructions have been revisited and consolidated as under:-

(a) The banks shall dispatch, free of charge, statements of accounts periodically (at least twice in a year on six monthly basis) to all their account holders (PLS/Current accounts) within 15 days from the close of half-year, i.e. 30th June & 31st December.

(b) The statement of accounts shall be dispatched free of charge and irrespective of amounts of balance in the accounts of depositors/customers.

(c) The statement of accounts of account holders/customers having a balance exceeding Rs.10,000 or above shall be sent either through a courier company or express post services of Pakistan Post.

(d) The banks may charge a maximum of Rs.50 for: (i) each duplicate statement of account (ii) additional statement of account (over and above two periodical statements indicated at (a) above).

(e) The banks shall make arrangements with the delivery companies for confirmation of dispatch of all statement of accounts to the account holders.

(f) Where statement of account is returned/undelivered, the banks may make all efforts to update record/address of the account holders.

3. Non-compliance of the above instructions would attract penal action under the provisions of the Banking Companies Ordinance, 1962.

4. This supersedes instructions issued vide BPD Circular No.21 of 2002 and BPD Circular Letter No.18 of 2004.

Basic Banking Account (BBA)

5. The statement of accounts to BBA customers/account holders would, however, continued to be dispatched once a year, as per directives issued vide BPD Circular No.30 of 2005. The banks may charge a maximum of Rs.50 for duplicate statement.