The protected consumer 200 unit rule means your domestic connection stays on the subsidised tariff only while your monthly usage stays at or below 200 units, for six months running. Cross 200 units even once, and you lose protected status and move to the higher unprotected rate. In July 2026 this is being enforced far more strictly than before: FESCO has instructed its billing staff that a protected consumer's bill will not be corrected if the recorded reading goes over 200 units by even a single unit.
That single unit is the whole story. This guide explains who counts as a protected consumer, exactly how the six-month window works, what the new no-correction instruction changes for you, and what to do if you think a reading is wrong.
What "protected consumer" actually means
Pakistan's domestic electricity tariff is split into two categories: protected and unprotected. Protected consumers are domestic users whose consumption has stayed at or below 200 units per month for six consecutive months. They are billed at heavily subsidised per-unit rates set by NEPRA.
Everyone else is unprotected. Unprotected consumers pay the standard domestic slab rates, which are substantially higher per unit. Same meter, same house, same wiring — the only difference is which category your billing history has put you in.
The category is not something you apply for. Your DISCO assigns it automatically based on the readings it records against your reference number. You can see your current status printed on your bill, and you can pull your latest bill free on the eBill Pakistan homepage using only your 14-digit reference number.
Lifeline consumers are a separate thing
Consumers on very low usage — under 100 units — fall into the lifeline category, which is subsidised even further. Lifeline is a sub-category, not a synonym for protected. If you are lifeline today, the same six-month discipline applies to you: sustained low usage keeps you there.
How the six-month window works
This is the part most people get wrong. Protected status is not judged on one month. It is judged on a rolling look-back of six consecutive months.
- Your DISCO looks at your recorded units for each of the last six billing months.
- If every one of those months is at or below 200 units, you are protected.
- If any single month in that window exceeds 200 units, you lose protected status.
- Once lost, you are billed at the unprotected tariff going forward.
- To get protected status back, you must build a fresh run of six consecutive months at or below 200 units.
So a one-off spike in a hot month does not just cost you that month. It resets the clock. You spend the following six months paying unprotected rates while you rebuild the record.
The cliff, not the slope
Slab tariffs normally step up gradually. Protected status does not. It is a cliff edge at exactly 200 units. At 200 units you are protected. At 201 units you are not — and the higher rate applies to the month's consumption, not just to the one extra unit.
This is why a 201-unit month feels so disproportionate on the bill. It is not a billing error. It is the rule working as designed.
What changed in July 2026
Historically, consumers who narrowly crossed 200 units would sometimes approach their subdivision office and ask for a correction, and in some cases a marginal overshoot was adjusted.
That route is being closed. According to news reports, FESCO has issued revised instructions that no correction will be made to a protected consumer's bill where recorded usage exceeds the 200-unit threshold, even by one unit. Reports describe officials directing strict implementation, with accountability for staff found responsible for negligence or error in billing.
Read the practical meaning carefully: this restricts discretionary adjustment of a correct reading. It does not remove your right to challenge a reading you believe is genuinely wrong. Those are two different things, and the difference matters for what you do next.
If you have crossed 200 units
First, establish whether the reading is accurate or mistaken. Pull your bill and check the meter figures against your own meter.
- Check your current bill against the physical meter display. Note the present and previous readings printed on the bill.
- Work out the difference yourself. Present reading minus previous reading should equal the units billed.
- Look for a reading that is wildly out of line with your last several months, with no change in your usage to explain it.
- If the figures reconcile, the bill is correct — the units were genuinely used, and no correction is due.
- If the figures do not reconcile, or the meter shows something different, you have grounds to raise a complaint.
For a genuine dispute, the first step is your DISCO's complaint channel. The national DISCO complaint helpline is 118. If your subdivision does not resolve it, escalate through your DISCO's complaint management system and then to NEPRA. Our guide on how to file an electricity overbilling complaint walks through each escalation stage in order.
Staying under 200 units
If you are close to the line, the practical work is knowing where you stand before the meter is read, not after.
Check your bill each month rather than waiting for a surprise. Consumers on FESCO can view theirs on the FESCO bill check page; every other DISCO has an equivalent page, and all of them need nothing more than your reference number.
Watch the appliances that move the needle. Air conditioning is the single largest swing factor in a domestic load, and one hot month with an AC running is the classic way a protected household lands at 210 units. Water pumps, electric heaters and old refrigerators are the next tier.
Understand what else is on the bill. Your total is not only units multiplied by a rate — fuel price adjustment, fixed charges and taxes all sit on top, and they move independently of your category. Our explainer on unit slabs, fuel price adjustment and taxes breaks down each line.
Where to check the official rates
Per-unit rates for protected and unprotected consumers are set by NEPRA and change over time. Do not rely on a figure quoted in a WhatsApp forward or an unofficial calculator site. The rate that applies to you is printed on your own bill, and NEPRA publishes its tariff determinations on nepra.org.pk.
If a page asks you to enter personal data, a CNIC or an OTP to "confirm your subsidy", treat it with suspicion. Checking a bill requires a reference number and nothing else.
Roman Urdu: khulasa
Protected consumer wo hai jiska bijli ka istemaal chhe mahine tak har mahine 200 units ya us se kam raha ho. Aise consumer ko subsidised rate milta hai.
Agar aap ek bhi mahine mein 200 units se upar chale gaye — chahe sirf 1 unit se — to protected status khatam ho jata hai, aur poore mahine ka bill unprotected rate par banega. Dobara protected banne ke liye chhe naye mahine 200 units ke andar guzarne honge.
July 2026 mein FESCO ne sakht hidayat di hai: 200 units se upar jane par bill mein correction nahi hoga. Lekin agar aapko lagta hai ke meter reading hi ghalat hai, to ye alag baat hai — 118 par complaint karein, phir apne DISCO ke system se NEPRA tak le jayein.
Behtar tareeqa: har mahine apna bill check karte rahein, taake 200 ki hadd paar hone se pehle pata chal jaye. Sirf 14-digit reference number chahiye.
Check your bill now
Do not wait for the bill to arrive to find out where your usage stands. Enter your 14-digit reference number on the eBill Pakistan homepage to view, print or download your latest bill free — no sign-up, no fee. If you are near the 200-unit line, checking early each month is the only reliable way to stay on the protected tariff.