The Honhaar Scholarship pays university tuition for talented Punjab students from families with limited income. As of September 2026, the official portal is taking new registrations only from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) students, so Punjab students cannot apply right now. This guide explains the last Punjab round’s rules, what the scholarship pays, how to apply when a round opens, and how to keep it once you have it.

The program is funded by the Punjab Higher Education Department and run by the Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) through one official portal: honhaarscholarship.punjabhec.gov.pk. Applying is free and fully online.

What is the Honhaar Scholarship?

The CM Punjab Honhaar Scholarship Program started taking registrations on 30 September 2024. Its official SOPs, updated in March 2026, set a target of up to 30,000 scholarships a year across 70 approved disciplines. The partner institutions are 50 public universities in Punjab, 359 government (HED) colleges, 15 public medical and dental colleges, and 39 selected federal and private universities.

The idea is simple. If your marks are good enough to get into an approved degree program, your family’s income should not stop you. Selection is on merit, and the money goes to your institution, not to you or any middleman. In June 2026, Dawn reported that more than 108,000 students had benefited so far.

honhaar scholarship: screenshot of the official honhaarscholarship.punjabhec.gov.pk page
The Honhaar Scholarship is applied for only on the official PHEC portal.

Honhaar Scholarship status in September 2026

Here is where things stand, based on the official portal on 15 September 2026:

  • The homepage says “New Registration is now open for Azad Jammu and Kashmir students”. The registration form only offers AJK as a province, and the institutes page lists only AJK institutions.
  • Punjab students cannot register at the moment. No opening date, deadline or new criteria for a Punjab 2026 round has been published.
  • The last Punjab round was for students admitted in Fall 2025. It opened in August 2025, and its deadline was extended to 26 October 2025.

If you are starting a BS or MBBS program in Fall 2026, get your documents ready now and watch the official portal. Some blogs already show a “last date” for 2026. Do not trust them. Only the portal and official announcements can open a new round.

Honhaar Scholarship eligibility (last Punjab round)

These were the official rules for the Fall 2025 Punjab round, from the program’s SOPs and FAQ. A new round may change them, so read the portal’s eligibility section before you apply. You needed:

  • A domicile from any district of Punjab. If you had applied for a domicile but not received it, the receiving slip was accepted.
  • A new admission. Only students in the 1st semester or 1st year of an approved discipline, admitted in Fall 2025, could apply. First-year MBBS and BDS students of 2025 were included. Second-year and later students were not.
  • An approved discipline at a listed institution. Students of affiliated or private colleges were not eligible.
  • A family monthly income under Rs 350,000 for public universities, HED colleges and public medical or dental colleges, or under Rs 500,000 for selected federal or private universities, declared on an affidavit.
  • No other scholarship or fee waiver from a government body, PEEF, HEC or your institution.

There was no age limit in the 2025 round, and the program is open to both male and female students.

Minimum Intermediate marks

InstitutionSciencesArts and social sciences
Public universities70%65%
Federal and private universities70%65%
Government (HED) colleges65%60%
Public medical and dental colleges (MBBS, BDS)80%Not applicable

Merit was worked out as 30% from your Matric marks and 70% from your Intermediate marks, separately for each institution. Some scholarships were also kept for Matric and FSc toppers of Punjab’s nine boards.

Older guides, including an earlier version of this page, gave “60% in FA/FSc” and “income below Rs 300,000” as the rules. Rs 300,000 applied to the 2024 rounds, and 60% was only the floor for arts students at government colleges. Use the figures above.

What the scholarship covers

  • Public institutions: full tuition fees for your undergraduate degree, paid each semester directly to the university or college.
  • Selected federal and private universities: PHEC pays 50% of the fees, and the university covers the other 50%.
  • Not covered: boarding, lodging, transport, refundable security, fines and similar charges.
  • No stipend. The official FAQ says the scholarship “only covers defined tuition fees”.

Before money is released, you sign a deed of agreement and surety bond with your institution. You cannot change your institution, and if you drop out, the university can recover the cost from you.

Keeping your scholarship: the grade rules

The award lasts for your whole degree, usually 4 or 5 years, but only if your results stay above these minimums (SOPs, March 2026):

  • Semester system, 4.00 scale: a GPA of at least 2.50 in the 1st semester and an overall CGPA of at least 2.70
  • Semester system, 5.00 scale: a GPA of at least 3.30 in the 1st semester and a CGPA of at least 3.50
  • Annual system: at least 60% in annual exams
  • MBBS and BDS: at least 50% in professional exams

If you fall short once, your institution gives you a warning. Falling short again stops the scholarship for that semester or year.

Documents you need

The portal’s How to Apply guide lists these uploads, each as a JPG or PNG file under 200 KB:

  • CNIC, front and back
  • Matric certificate, or an O-Level equivalence certificate
  • Intermediate certificate, or an A-Level equivalence certificate
  • Domicile certificate
  • Signed income affidavit, using the template on the portal, on stamp paper of at least Rs 50
  • A recent photo, under 200 KB

Keep the originals safe. Your institution checks them again at physical verification, and it may also ask for proof of income, such as a salary slip or utility bills. If you still need a domicile, see our guide to getting a Punjab domicile online.

How to apply online, step by step

Applications are not open for Punjab right now. These steps show how the last round worked, so you are ready when a new one opens.

Step 1: Register

Open honhaarscholarship.punjabhec.gov.pk and create an account. Choose your province, institute type and university, and enter your own CNIC. Using someone else’s CNIC leads to disqualification.

Step 2: Log in and fill the tabs

Log in with your CNIC, typed without dashes or spaces, your password and the captcha. Download the sample affidavit, then fill the Personal, Address and Education tabs. If your Intermediate Part II result was not out yet, the last round let you enter Part I marks and update them later.

Step 3: Upload your documents

Upload every document listed above. Check that each file is clear and under 200 KB.

Step 4: Review and submit

Check every detail, then press SUBMIT. A saved “review” version is not accepted. The portal then gives you an application ID and shows your status.

What happens after you apply

  1. Your institution’s focal person checks your details online. If your application is rejected for wrong information, you get one chance to correct it by email.
  2. PHEC’s system makes a provisional merit list for each institution.
  3. An institutional committee does physical verification of your documents.
  4. A grievance committee hears complaints, and PHEC then issues award letters.

You are told about your status by email and in your portal account.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Waiting for the wrong round. Rounds are for new admissions, so apply in the year you start your degree.
  • An income affidavit missing or wrong. Use the portal’s template and the right income limit for your institution.
  • Details that do not match your documents. Enter your name, marks and CNIC exactly as printed.
  • Not pressing Submit. A form left in review is not an application.
  • Using a copycat site. Only honhaarscholarship.punjabhec.gov.pk is official.

Applying is free: stay safe from fraud

  • The official FAQ says there is no fee to submit the application.
  • No agent can add your name to a merit list or change your marks.
  • Never share your password or an OTP, even with someone who says they are from PHEC.
  • Apply only on the official portal. If you apply from an internet cafe, log out and do not let anyone keep your details.

If someone asks you for money, report it through the Pakistan Citizen’s Portal.

Contact

Students may also qualify for these programs:

Honhaar does not allow a second scholarship at the same time, so compare the rules before you accept any award.

To see which other Punjab and federal programs your household may qualify for, try our free eligibility checker.

GoPunjab is an independent information website. We are not PHEC or the Higher Education Department, and we cannot register you, verify your documents or award a scholarship. We only explain how the official process works so you can apply correctly yourself.