GPU prices may be dropping, but graphics cards are still expensive. Some people are trying to save on import duties by declaring lower values. However, this was clearly unacceptable to the government, so Pakistan now uses the on-board memory capacity to calculate import taxes on GPUs.
Starting in August, Pakistani customs will reportedly assess the value of graphics cards according to the amount of memory installed, adding an import tax of 36%, regardless of the graphics processor used. INCPak (via video cards). The government has issued special valuation rules setting the price of a graphics board with 4 GB of memory at $65, a card with 12 GB at $328, and a card with 24 GB of RAM at $540.
Import duties are calculated by converting a pre-set value into Pakistani Rupees and applying 36% tax. For example, the GeForce RTX 3090 Ti 24GB graphics card has an import tariff of $194.4. This is arguably one of the best graphics cards available today. Also, to better understand what people are buying, officials are requiring customs officials to report the actual models that were imported.
Pakistan Graphics Card Rating Decision
| storage capacity | Valuation in USD |
| 4GB | $65 |
| 6GB | $98 |
| 8GB | $196 |
| 10GB | $262 |
| 12GB | $328 |
| 16 GB | $468 |
| 24GB | $540 |
Given that a new graphics card with 12GB of memory costs over $328, and a board with 24GB of DRAM costs over $540, this Pakistani-style valuation method is actually beneficial to users. . In fact, Pakistani gamers will enjoy relatively modest import duties on AMD’s upcoming Radeon RX 7000 series boards and Nvidia’s new GeForce RTX 40 series boards.
This type of valuation problem occurs when someone buys a graphics card (old or used) at a discount. Older cards with more onboard memory can be much more expensive than they are today.
The irony of this new policy is that Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3060 Ti with 8GB of onboard memory has a suggested retail price of $70 more than Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3060 with 12GB of onboard memory. That’s it. Apparently, some graphics cards make no sense in Pakistan thanks to import taxes.
