A K-Electric bill has two groups of charges. Electricity charges follow the tariff set by NEPRA. Taxes and duties, including MUCT, are collected by KE for the federal and provincial governments and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), and KE says it does not keep them.
The lines most worth checking yourself are the units billed, the meter reading and any extra invoices on the back. Tax rates and MUCT rates are set elsewhere, but you can still ask KE whether the right slab or category was applied to you.
The layout KE has used since August 2025
KE introduced a new bill format effective August 2025. If you are comparing an older bill with a recent one, this is why things have moved.
The new format shows:
- a breakdown of the billed amount
- current dues and outstanding dues, shown separately
- personalised updates for your account
- electricity charges and taxes as separate parts of the bill
If you do not have the paper bill to hand, our guide to checking a K-Electric bill online shows how to pull up a copy.
Front of the bill: Bill Calculation
Start with the section headed Bill Calculation. It shows your meter number, the meter reading date and an item KE labels BCM. KE's bill guide lists BCM without explaining it, so if you are unsure what that figure refers to on your bill, ask KE rather than guess.
Check two things here:
- The meter number matches the number on the meter at your home.
- The reading date is close to when the reader actually came, if you know it.
The front of the bill also carries the FCA line, with a note on how it was calculated. More on that below.
Electricity charges
This bar covers what you used in the billing period. KE lists these parts.
Variable charges
Variable charges are based on the units you used. KE says the tariff is set by NEPRA and is the same for K-Electric as for the government-owned distribution companies elsewhere in Pakistan: the price per unit rises as your consumption rises.
The table below shows the current NEPRA domestic rates, slab by slab.
Domestic rates run from Rs 10.54/unit (protected, first 100 units) to Rs 47.20/unit (unprotected, above 700), plus a fixed charge per kilowatt of sanctioned load. The band most households sit in, 101–200 units unprotected, is Rs 28.91/unit.
Crucially, billing is not telescopic: an unprotected consumer pays the rate of the band their month reaches on every unit. See the full schedule, fixed charges and the adjustment in force →
S.R.O. 279(I)/2026 — NEPRA decision of 11 February 2026, effective 2026-02-12. S.R.O. 46(I)/2026 (Schedule of Tariff), as modified by S.R.O. 279(I)/2026 of 12 February 2026
KE also publishes its own tariff calculator and the official SROs (the government tariff notifications) on its tariff structure page at ke.com.pk/tariff-structure. If you want to understand how slabs push a bill up, see unit slabs, fuel adjustments and taxes explained.
Fixed charges
KE describes fixed charges as a monthly charge for keeping your connection and the grid available to you, whatever you consume. For residential consumers, KE says fixed charges apply only when monthly use goes above 300 units.
So if you used 300 units or fewer and you see a fixed charge on a residential bill, that is worth querying. We have not verified the current rupee amount from a KE or NEPRA source, so check the figure on your own bill and against the SROs on KE's tariff page. For how fixed charges work on larger connections, read what MDI and fixed charges mean.
FCA (fuel cost adjustment)
The FCA adjusts your bill for the actual cost of fuel used to generate electricity. KE says the FCA amount and how it was calculated are printed on the front of the bill.
You may see more than one FCA entry on a single bill. KE notes this happened on some bills between June and September 2024. Each entry relates to a different month's adjustment, so two lines are not automatically a double charge, but you can ask KE to explain them.
The current figures change monthly. See this month's FCA and quarterly adjustment for the latest, with past months.
QTA (quarterly adjustment)
The QTA is the quarterly adjustment to the tariff and appears as its own line. Like the FCA, the rate changes, so check it against the current figure on our monthly page rather than a figure from a blog post.
Additional Surcharge (PHL)
KE lists an Additional Surcharge (PHL) as a separate part of the bill. KE's bill guide names it without setting out how it is calculated, so we do not give a rate here. If the amount on your bill looks out of line with previous months, ask KE on 118 how it was worked out.
Taxes and duties
The Taxes & Duties bar covers GST, income tax, electricity duty and MUCT. KE says it collects these for the federal and provincial governments and does not keep them.
MUCT (the KMC charge)
MUCT stands for Municipal Utility Charges and Taxes. It is a KMC levy, not a KE charge. KE only collects it through the bill, from consumers inside the KMC's jurisdiction.
How it came about:
- In 2022 the Sindh High Court temporarily stopped KMC taxes from being collected through electricity bills.
- The KMC and KE had signed an agreement in June 2022.
- The arrangement took effect in July 2024 after the City Council approved it.
- The KMC formally notified collection in August 2024. At the time, Dawn reported charges of up to Rs 400 a month, applied within the city but not in cantonment areas.
Rates depend on your consumption slab or consumer category, and the KMC notifies them from time to time. As reported by Dawn in about September 2025, the residential slabs were:
| Monthly units | MUCT per month |
|---|---|
| Up to 100 | Exempt |
| 101 to 200 | Rs 20 |
| 201 to 300 | Rs 40 |
| 301 to 400 | Rs 100 |
We could not confirm the rates for homes using more than 400 units, or the current rates for shops and industry. In 2025 the KMC nearly doubled MUCT for industrial and commercial users; the opposition said this broke legal limits, and the Jamaat-e-Islami opposition leader sent KE a legal notice. If you are a commercial or industrial consumer, check the MUCT figure on your own bill rather than relying on older numbers.
For scale, the Express Tribune reported in about November 2024 that the KMC collected Rs 228 million through power bills in one month, against a target of Rs 3 billion a year.
GST, income tax and electricity duty
These are set by the federal and provincial governments, not KE. We have not verified the current GST percentage or electricity duty rate from an official source, so read the amounts on your bill and treat percentages quoted on lookalike "KE bill" sites with caution.
What about the PTV fee
The Rs 35 PTV fee was removed from electricity bills effective July 2025 under a Power Division notification, and the directive is reported to include K-Electric. Older pages on KE's site describing how to claim a TV fee exemption appear out of date. If a current KE bill still shows a TV fee, raise it with KE.
Back of the bill: extra invoices and the meter photo
The back of the new-format bill has a section for extra invoices. These can include:
- meter change
- net metering
- payment lock
- security deposit
- irregular billing
It also shows a photo of your meter. This is the most useful check on the whole bill. Compare the reading in the photo with the reading on your own meter. If the photo is unclear, shows a different meter, or shows a reading lower than the one billed, you have grounds to query the units.
An irregular billing invoice you did not expect deserves a direct question to KE about what it covers and how it was calculated.
Who sets each charge
| Line on the bill | Who sets it | Collected by |
|---|---|---|
| Variable charges | NEPRA tariff | KE |
| Fixed charges | NEPRA tariff | KE |
| FCA and QTA | Tariff adjustments | KE |
| Additional Surcharge (PHL) | Listed by KE; check with KE | KE |
| GST, income tax, electricity duty | Federal and provincial governments | KE, passed on |
| MUCT | KMC | KE, passed on |
Which charges you can question, and where
You cannot negotiate a tax rate or the NEPRA tariff with KE. You can question whether it was applied correctly to you. Reasonable queries include:
- Units billed. The meter photo reading does not match your meter.
- Fixed charges on a residential bill where you used 300 units or fewer.
- MUCT slab. The amount does not match your units, or you believe your property is outside the KMC's jurisdiction.
- Extra invoices on the back that you do not recognise.
- A TV fee still appearing after July 2025.
- Multiple FCA lines you want explained.
Call KE on 118 or email Customer.care@ke.com.pk. Keep a photo of your meter and a copy of the bill. If the reply does not resolve it, our complaint letter template gives you a written complaint in English or Urdu.
Paying: why the app took more
KE says it charges nothing above the Gross Amount Payable, and there is currently no fee for card payments on KE's website. If your bank or payment app deducted more, that extra is the channel's value-added service charge, not a KE charge, so take it up with the channel.
If you want to pay ahead, you can request an advance payment bill on 118 or by emailing Customer.care@ke.com.pk.
What to do next
- Open your latest bill on the bill checker and find the Bill Calculation section and the FCA line.
- Compare the meter photo on the back with your own meter reading today.
- Check your units against the MUCT slab table above and the fixed charge threshold of 300 units.
- Check the FCA and QTA against the current figures on our monthly page.
- Call 118 or email Customer.care@ke.com.pk with anything that does not add up, and keep the reply.
Sources
- Know Your Bill (K-Electric)
- Know Your Bill, new bill format (K-Electric)
- FAQs (K-Electric)
- KMC nearly doubles municipal utility charges for industries, shops (Dawn)
- Karachiites, forget relief and get ready for another tax in KE bills (Dawn)
- KMC collects Rs228m taxes via power bills (Express Tribune)
- SHC restricts collection of KMC taxes with electricity bills for now (Geo)
- Govt likely to scrap Rs35 PTV fee from electricity bills (Geo/The News)
- PTV fee: Rs 35 collection abolished from electricity bills (ARY)
- No more TV fee in electricity bills, power division directs (Minute Mirror)