Pakistan's National Assembly approved a bill on Thursday that will convert the State Life Insurance Corporation (SLIC), a state-owned insurer, into a company. The bill was moved by Bilal Kayani, Minister of State for Finance and Railways, and cleared by majority vote after the House went through it clause by clause. The change is presented as a way to give the insurer more room to operate, and it could later open the door to privatisation, meaning the transfer of ownership or control to private investors.
Why the law is being changed
The bill's explanatory statement says the amendments are meant to tackle structural and operational limits that the insurer faces. The aim is also to improve its efficiency, transparency and corporate governance. The current framework rests on the Life Insurance (Nationalisation) Order, 1972, which brought life insurance under state control and created State Life as a statutory body set up by law. According to the statement, shifts in the financial sector and newer regulatory and governance standards made a review of its legal and operational structure necessary.
What changes and what does not
Under the bill, State Life would become a company registered under the Companies Act, 2017, the main law governing companies in Pakistan, and its legal framework would be aligned with the State-Owned Enterprises Act, 2023. The bill also sets out a route for future divestment, meaning the government selling its shares, or privatisation, but only with federal government approval and compliance with applicable laws. The statement is clear that the amendments do not themselves decide to sell the insurer. They are meant to remove legal obstacles in case the government chooses either route later.
Assets, liabilities, rights and obligations would move to the successor company so that operations continue through the transition. The bill also aims to safeguard policyholders' interests and to protect employees' existing terms and conditions of service, including retirement benefits. Transitional provisions are intended to settle legal and procedural uncertainties during the restructuring, and the bill allows exemptions from stamp duty, a tax on legal documents, and from registration fees where they apply.
Approval steps and related bills
The statement says the amendments were finalised after consultation with relevant stakeholders and reviewed by the Law and Justice Division. The Cabinet Committee for Legislative Cases approved the draft on December 24, 2025, and the federal cabinet ratified it on December 26, 2025. A separate House Privatization Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2026, was also laid before the House and sent to the relevant committee for further consideration.
The House also received the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, laid under clause (2) of Article 89 of the Constitution. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) is the sector regulator, and an ordinance is a temporary law issued by the president that must later be placed before parliament. The ordinance had first been laid before the Senate on October 13. The bill itself sets no timetable for any sale of State Life, and any such decision would require separate federal approval.
