LAHORE: The Punjab government has amended the Punjab Private Educational Institutions Act to bring home-based tuition centres, coaching centres and academies operating in residential areas within the definition of private educational institutions and under the tax net.
According to a news report, the amendment, to be known as the Punjab Private Educational Institutions Act 2026, formally recognises tuition centres run from homes, including those operated by women and girls, as well as small coaching centres and neighbourhood academies, as private educational institutions.
Under the amended law, their buildings and properties will fall within the property tax regime, while electricity and water connections will be treated as commercial.
Small private schools operating in residential areas will also come under the tax net, regardless of whether they are registered or unregistered.
The move has drawn criticism from the All Pakistan Private Schools Colleges Association, which has called for the amendment to be withdrawn.
The association argued that the changes would particularly affect women and girls who teach small numbers of neighbourhood children from their homes to supplement household incomes.
It said treating such small-scale tuition centres as commercial establishments would impose additional property and utility-related costs on them and could further burden low-income families.
The association urged the provincial government to withdraw the amendment and reconsider the imposition of commercial taxes and property-related charges on home-based tuition centres.
