Civil Servants Appointment, Promotion and Transfer Rules 1973 Explained

The Civil Servants (Appointment, Promotion and Transfer) Rules, 1973, usually called the APT Rules 1973, are the federal rules that decide how a civil servant is appointed, promoted and transferred in Pakistan.

In Urdu: اے پی ٹی رولز 1973 وفاقی ملازمین کی تقرری، ترقی اور تبادلے کے قواعد ہیں۔

They were made under section 25 of the Civil Servants Act, 1973, by the Establishment Division through Notification No. S.R.O. 1498(I)/73, dated 20 October 1973.

This guide explains the three methods of appointment, how promotions are decided, the quotas for initial appointment, and transfers, in plain language.

APT Rules 1973 at a glance#

The table below gives the basic facts. Every rule number comes from the Rules themselves, as published in the Establishment Division’s Estacode.

What are the APT Rules 1973 in Pakistan?#

The APT Rules 1973 in Pakistan are the rules that govern how a federal civil servant enters service, moves up, and moves to another post. They cover appointment, promotion and transfer, and nothing else.

They are federal rules. They apply to the All Pakistan Services, the Civil Services of the Federation, and posts in connection with the affairs of the Federation. Provincial employees are governed by their own provincial rules, not by the APT Rules.

The Rules sit under the Civil Servants Act, 1973. The Act gives the framework: section 6 deals with appointment, section 9 with promotion, section 10 with transfer, and section 25 gives the power to make rules.

The APT Rules are the rules made under section 25.

The Rules are published in the Establishment Division’s Estacode, which is the compilation of the service rules and instructions for federal civil servants. The Estacode is the source to read for the full text of the Rules and their amendments.

How are civil servants appointed under the APT Rules?#

A civil servant is appointed under the APT Rules by one of three methods: promotion, transfer, or initial appointment. Rule 3(1) of the Rules names all three.

The method for each post is not fixed by the APT Rules themselves. Rule 3(2) says the method of appointment, and the qualifications and other conditions for a post, are laid down by the Ministry or Division concerned in consultation with the Establishment Division.

Every post has its own recruitment rules that fix its method, its qualifications and its age limit.

That is why the ratio between promotion and direct recruitment differs from post to post.

The ministerial posts are one example: a Lower Division Clerk is filled 10% by promotion and 90% by direct recruitment, an Upper Division Clerk 50% by promotion and 50% by direct recruitment, and an Assistant 50% by promotion and 50% by direct recruitment.

How are promotions decided under the APT Rules?#

Promotions under the APT Rules are decided on the recommendation of a committee, not by the appointing authority alone. Rule 7 fixes which committee decides for which scale.

Rule 8 says only persons who possess the qualifications and meet the conditions laid down for promotion to a post are considered by the DPC or the CSB. An officer who does not meet the conditions is not considered at all.

Rule 8-A adds a further condition. No regular promotion is made to a post in BPS 17 to 22 unless the officer has completed the minimum length of service, attended the prescribed training, and passed the departmental examination.

The minimum lengths of service are fixed by the promotion rules in force.

Under the Civil Servants Promotion (BPS-18 to BPS-21) Rules, 2019, an officer needs 5 years of service in BS-17 for promotion to BPS-18, 12 years of service in BS-17 and above for promotion to BPS-19, and 17 years of service for promotion to BPS-20.

Your PER is the record the committee reads. The DPC and the CSB consider the officer’s performance evaluation reports, the length of service, the training completed, and any disciplinary record, and recommend promotion on that basis.

Rule 8-B covers the acting charge appointment.

Where the appointing authority considers it in the public interest to fill a post reserved for departmental promotion, and the senior-most eligible officer does not yet have the specified length of service, the authority may appoint him on acting charge basis.

The same applies to a post in BPS 17 to 22 reserved for initial appointment where no suitable officer is available.

What is the quota for initial appointment?#

There is no single quota for initial appointment under the APT Rules. The ratio between promotion and direct recruitment is fixed post by post, in the recruitment rules of that post, under Rule 3(2).

The ministerial posts show how the ratio varies. A Lower Division Clerk is filled 10% by promotion and 90% by direct recruitment. An Upper Division Clerk is filled 50% by promotion and 50% by direct recruitment.

An Assistant is filled 50% by promotion and 50% by direct recruitment. An Upper Division Clerk in the Selection Grade is filled 100% by promotion.

A different quota applies to who gets the directly recruited posts. Initial appointment to federal posts is made on merit and on the provincial and regional quota.

The quota for federal recruitment is: merit 7.5%, Punjab 50%, Sindh 19% (Sindh Rural 11.4% and Sindh Urban 7.6%), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 11.5%, Balochistan 6%, FATA and Northern Areas 4%, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir 2%.

Two further quotas apply across the board in federal government services. Ten percent of posts are reserved for the employment of women, and 10% of the Central Superior Services posts are reserved for women.

Initial appointment: who recruits for which posts#

Initial appointment under the APT Rules is made by two different bodies, depending on the scale of the post. Rule 10 and Rule 11 draw the line at BPS 16.

Rule 10 covers initial appointment to the All Pakistan Services, the Civil Services of the Federation, and posts in BPS 16 and above, on the basis of tests and examinations conducted by the Commission.

Posts that do not fall within the purview of the Commission under the Federal Public Service Commission (Functions) Rules, 1978, are excepted.

Rule 11 covers initial appointments to posts in BPS 1 to 15. These are made on the recommendations of the Departmental Selection Committee, after the vacancies have been advertised in newspapers.

Two domicile rules apply to the lower scales. Rule 15 says vacancies in posts in BPS 3 to 15 in offices which serve only a particular province or region are filled by appointment of persons domiciled in that province or region.

Rule 16 says vacancies in posts in BPS 1 and 2 are ordinarily filled on a local basis.

The upper age limit for initial appointment is fixed in the recruitment rules of each post.

The Initial Appointment to Civil Posts (Relaxation of Upper Age Limit) Rules, 1993, give a general relaxation of 5 years in the upper age limit prescribed in the recruitment rules.

Transfer under the APT Rules#

Transfer under the APT Rules means appointment to a post in another service, cadre or department. It is one of the three methods of appointment in Rule 3, and it is decided the same way as promotion.

Rule 7 applies to transfer as it applies to promotion.

A transfer to a post in BPS 2 to 18 is made on the recommendation of the Departmental Promotion Committee, and a transfer to a post in BPS 19 to 21 is made on the recommendation of the Central Selection Board.

The Civil Servants Act, 1973, goes further. Section 10 of the Act says every civil servant is liable to serve anywhere in or outside Pakistan, and under the Federal Government or a Provincial Government.

A civil servant can therefore be transferred to any post, in any part of the country, and to a provincial government.

Transfer is not the same as deputation. In a transfer, the civil servant moves to the new post and the new post becomes his own.

In a deputation, the civil servant is lent to another department or organisation for a fixed period and then returns to his parent department.

Probation and confirmation#

The APT Rules do not set the probationary period. Probation and confirmation are governed by the Civil Servants (Confirmation) Rules, 1993.

A person appointed to a post serves a probationary period before he is confirmed in service. The probation period guide explains how long probation lasts, what happens if it is extended, and what confirmation means for a civil servant.

Confirmation matters for promotion. An officer who has not been confirmed in his post is not considered for promotion to a higher post in the normal course.

What the APT Rules do not cover#

The APT Rules cover appointment, promotion and transfer only. Three other subjects that serving employees often confuse with them are governed by separate rules.

• Seniority: governed by the Civil Servants (Seniority) Rules, 1993, not by the APT Rules. Seniority decides who is considered first for promotion, but the seniority rules themselves are separate.
• Pay and allowances: governed by the Basic Pay Scales and the Finance Division’s orders, not by the APT Rules. The Rules decide the post; the pay scales decide the pay.
• Discipline: federal civil servants are governed by the Government Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) Rules, 1973. Punjab government employees are governed by the PEEDA Act, 2006. The APT Rules contain no penalties.

Mistakes to avoid under the APT Rules#

• Reading the APT Rules as provincial rules: the APT Rules are federal. A Punjab, Sindh, KP or Balochistan employee is governed by his own province’s service rules, not by the APT Rules.
• Expecting a single promotion quota: the ratio between promotion and direct recruitment is fixed post by post under Rule 3(2). There is no one quota for all posts.
• Confusing the provincial quota with the promotion quota: the provincial and regional quota (Punjab 50%, Sindh 19% and so on) applies to initial appointment to federal posts. It does not apply to promotion.
• Assuming seniority alone earns promotion: Rule 8-A requires the minimum length of service, the prescribed training and the departmental examination. Seniority without those conditions does not earn a regular promotion.
• Confusing transfer with deputation: a transfer moves you to the new post permanently. A deputation lends you to another department for a fixed period and you return to your parent department.
• Skipping the recruitment rules of the post: the APT Rules give the framework. The recruitment rules of the post give the method, the qualifications, the age limit and the quota. Read those before you apply or claim a promotion.

Frequently asked questions#

How are promotions decided under the APT Rules?

Promotions under the APT Rules are decided on the recommendation of a committee. The Departmental Promotion Committee recommends promotions to posts in BPS 2 to 18, and the Central Selection Board recommends promotions to posts in BPS 19 to 21.

Only officers who meet the qualifications and conditions for the post are considered. Rule 8-A requires the minimum length of service, the prescribed training and the departmental examination.

Under the 2019 promotion rules, that means 5 years in BS-17 for BPS-18, 12 years in BS-17 and above for BPS-19, and 17 years for BPS-20.

What is the quota for initial appointment?

There is no single quota for initial appointment. The ratio between promotion and direct recruitment is fixed post by post in the recruitment rules of that post, under Rule 3(2).

For example, a Lower Division Clerk is filled 10% by promotion and 90% by direct recruitment, while an Upper Division Clerk and an Assistant are filled 50% by promotion and 50% by direct recruitment.

The provincial and regional quota (merit 7.5%, Punjab 50%, Sindh 19%, KP 11.5%, Balochistan 6%, FATA and Northern Areas 4%, AJ&K 2%) applies to who gets the directly recruited federal posts.

Do the APT Rules apply to provincial employees?

No, the APT Rules 1973 are federal rules. They apply to the All Pakistan Services, the Civil Services of the Federation, and posts in connection with the affairs of the Federation.

Provincial employees are governed by their own province’s service rules. A Punjab employee, for example, is governed by the Punjab service rules and, for discipline, by the PEEDA Act 2006.

Where can I read the APT Rules 1973?

The full text of the APT Rules 1973 is published in the Establishment Division’s Estacode, Chapter 2, as Sl. No. 1. The Rules were made by Establishment Division Notification No. S.R.O. 1498(I)/73, dated 20 October 1973, under section 25 of the Civil Servants Act, 1973.

The Establishment Division’s website does not load from every connection, so the guide cites the Rules by their number and date rather than linking to the site.

A copy of the Estacode is also kept in the libraries of the federal ministries and in the Establishment Division’s offices.