PM Youth Chromebook Scheme: 500,000 Free Chromebooks for Students
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif launched the PM Youth Chromebook Scheme in Islamabad on 25 October 2026, offering 500,000 Chromebooks to talented students across Pakistan over two years. The scheme is run by the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training with the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, and the Inter Boards Coordination Commission (IBCC) verifies students’ results. Punjab receives the largest share of the devices, with 181,090 Chromebooks, but students in every province and region are covered.
This guide explains the scheme in plain terms: who qualifies, how the devices are shared, how to apply on the official IBCC portal, what documents you need, what to do if your record is not found, how delivery works, what is actually known about deadlines, and how to stay safe from fraud. Readers looking for other student and welfare programmes can also browse the Government Schemes hub for related updates.
Is Article Mein
- What the PM Youth Chromebook Scheme Is
- Who Is Eligible for a Free Chromebook
- How the 500,000 Chromebooks Are Shared
- Are the Chromebooks New or Refurbished?
- How to Apply on the IBCC Portal
- Documents You Need
- What to Do If Your Record Is Not Found
- How You Will Receive Your Chromebook
- Deadlines: What Is Actually Known
- Scam Warning: Fake Portals and False Promises
- FAQs
What the PM Youth Chromebook Scheme Is
The PM Youth Chromebook Scheme gives free Chromebooks to high-performing school students across Pakistan, selected on merit from their board examination results. At the launch, the Prime Minister said talent and hard work should not be held back by poverty, and that the devices would help students learn online, use electronic libraries, and compete with students anywhere in the world. Selected students also receive a MiFi internet device, and launch reports mention a bag as well. The programme says one internet connection can benefit up to five people, extending digital access to around 2.5 million people.
Device schemes for students are not new in Pakistan. An earlier PM Youth Laptop Scheme gave around 600,000 laptops to students over roughly ten years, and Punjab students may also remember the Honhaar laptop distribution ceremony for university students. This scheme is different in two ways: it targets school toppers rather than university students, and it aims to distribute 500,000 devices in just two years, a much faster pace than the earlier laptop programme.
Who Is Eligible for a Free Chromebook
The official IBCC portal sets the eligibility clearly. Only students enrolled in government or public schools are eligible. For the boards of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, only the top-performing students of Grade 9 (SSC-I) from the Annual Examinations 2026 are considered. For the boards of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Islamabad Capital Territory and Gilgit-Baltistan, the top-performing students of both Grade 9 (SSC-I) and Grade 10 (SSC-II) from the Annual Examinations 2026 are considered. Students of ordinary private schools are not eligible under the portal’s criteria.
You qualify only if all of these are true together: you study in a government or public school, you are in the right grade for your region, your result is from the Annual Examinations 2026, and your name is on the list of top performers your board sent to IBCC. There is no single nationwide marks percentage printed on the portal, so your board’s list is what decides whether you count as a top performer. Students looking for financial support for higher studies can also check the Honhaar Scholarship separately, because that programme has its own rules.
How the 500,000 Chromebooks Are Shared
The 500,000 devices are divided among the provinces and regions by a fixed quota. Punjab receives the largest share at 181,090 devices, which is more than one-third of the total, while Islamabad receives a notably large allocation of 100,000 devices. The figures below add up to exactly 500,000, which is a useful check that the quota list is complete.
| Province or Region | Chromebooks |
|---|---|
| Punjab | 181,090 |
| Sindh | 85,925 |
| Khyber Pakhtunkhwa | 51,170 |
| Balochistan | 31,815 |
| Islamabad | 100,000 |
| Azad Jammu and Kashmir | 25,000 |
| Gilgit-Baltistan | 25,000 |
| Total | 500,000 |
Within each province or region, the devices are shared by a fixed formula: 80 percent go to school students and 20 percent to students of registered religious seminaries, whose scrutiny is handled separately through the Directorate General of Religious Education. Among school students, 70 percent of the allocation is for science students and 30 percent for arts students. Selection runs on merit within each province or region, examination board and academic stream until that quota is filled.
Are the Chromebooks New or Refurbished?
The Chromebooks are refurbished devices, not brand-new ones. They are supplied through the Tokyo Technology Care Foundation, which signed an agreement with the government to support the scheme. Journalist Sanaullah Khan reported, citing the focal person at the Ministry of Youth Affairs, that the devices are donated used units rather than a fresh government purchase. This fact was not prominent in the launch announcement, so students should know it plainly before they apply.
A refurbished device may show normal signs of earlier use, but it is still your assigned device, and each Chromebook is linked to its student by serial number. Check your device when it arrives and keep your reference slip and delivery record safe, so any problem can be reported through the proper channel. Do not let anyone charge you extra for a supposedly new device, because no new-device version of this scheme exists.
How to Apply on the IBCC Portal
Applications are submitted online only through the official IBCC portal (pmychromebooks.ibcc.edu.pk). There is no paper form and no other official website for this scheme. Each student can apply only once, and once you submit, you cannot change the form yourself, so check everything on the review screen before the final click. Giving false information cancels the Chromebook allocation and may lead to further action.
- Open the official IBCC portal (pmychromebooks.ibcc.edu.pk) and select your board
- Enter your CNIC or B-Form number, roll number or registration number, using numbers only with no dashes, along with your date of birth
- Click Find my record to load your details from your board’s list
- Check your name, school and marks carefully against the board’s record
- Upload the documents listed in the next section
- Submit the form and download your reference slip
After you submit, keep your reference slip safe as proof of registration, because it carries your reference number. The portal checks your details against the list your board sent, so submitting the form does not by itself guarantee a device. Selection follows the merit lists and quotas described above, and delivery comes after that process.
Documents You Need
Four documents are required, and each one must be clearly readable or your application may face problems. The photograph must be recent, front-facing and on a plain background. The B-Form or CNIC copy and your father or guardian’s CNIC copy must be attested copies, not plain photocopies.
| Document | Format | Maximum Size |
|---|---|---|
| Recent colour photograph | JPG or PNG | 300 KB |
| SSC-I or SSC-II mark sheet | JPG, PNG or PDF | 300 KB |
| B-Form or CNIC copy, attested | JPG, PNG or PDF | 300 KB |
| Father or guardian CNIC copy, attested | JPG, PNG or PDF | 300 KB |
The 300 KB limit is the detail most students get wrong, so prepare your files before you start. When you compress a scan to fit the limit, make sure the text stays sharp and readable, because an unreadable document can hold up or reject your application. Keep your originals safe as well, since the attested copies are made from them and your school or board may ask to see them later.
What to Do If Your Record Is Not Found
If the portal does not find your record, do not assume at once that you are ineligible. The portal’s own advice is to try your roll number or registration number instead of your CNIC or B-Form, because your board may have listed you under a different number. Enter numbers only, with no dashes, and make sure your date of birth matches exactly what your school and board records show, since a small mismatch can also cause a failed search.
If your record is still not found after trying the other numbers, contact your board directly, because only your board can explain the state of its list. There are two common reasons: your board’s list may not be final or sent to IBCC yet, or you may not be on the top-performer list for your board. No person outside the system can add your name to a board list, so do not pay anyone who claims otherwise.
How You Will Receive Your Chromebook
Once merit lists are finalised, the devices are delivered to selected students by courier, rather than collected from an office. Each Chromebook is linked to its intended student through its serial number, and the records are checked against the student’s merit position, enrolment, institutional affiliation and delivery information. A monitoring system tracks dispatches and deliveries, so there is a record of whether your package arrived.
If something goes wrong with selection, verification or delivery, grievance committees at the examination-board and provincial or regional levels handle complaints. These committees cover problems such as merit ranking disputes, eligibility verification issues, missing records and non-delivery. Keep your reference slip, your delivery record and your device’s serial number together, because those three items are what any complaint will be checked against.
Deadlines: What Is Actually Known
There is no single national deadline printed on the IBCC portal, so do not trust a forwarded message claiming one unless your own board published it. Boards send their own lists to IBCC and publish their own notices, which means the dates that matter are your board’s dates, not a single date for the whole country. If anyone quotes a national last date for this scheme, treat it as unverified until your board confirms it.
Two board-specific dates have been reported and should not be confused with a national deadline. Notices from BISE Lahore and the Azad Jammu and Kashmir board showed 19 October 2026, while Sindh’s registration was tied to the announcement of the 2026 annual ninth-grade results by Sindh’s boards. Check your own board’s notice and the portal itself: if your board’s window has passed, the portal’s record check, not rumours, is the truth about your application.
Scam Warning: Fake Portals and False Promises
Only one website is the official portal for this scheme: pmychromebooks.ibcc.edu.pk. Look-alike websites exist that ask students for their CNIC or B-Form details, and sharing personal data on such a site puts your identity at risk. There is no fee for applying, no agent who can arrange a Chromebook, and no form for sale. Selection comes only from your board’s list, so anyone offering a shortcut is not part of the programme.
- Someone charges a fee to apply for you or to guarantee you a Chromebook
- A website other than the IBCC portal asks for your CNIC or B-Form details
- Someone promises to add your name to your board’s top-performer list
- Someone sells you a form or demands your documents over WhatsApp
If someone approaches you with any of these offers, do not share your personal data and do not pay anything. Report the matter to your school or board, and verify everything only on the official portal and your board’s official notice. A genuine scheme never asks for money to put a deserving student on a merit list.
FAQs
Who qualifies for a free Chromebook?
Top-performing students of government or public schools: Grade 9 in Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, and Grade 9 and Grade 10 in Islamabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, based on the Annual Examinations 2026 and board lists.
Can private school students apply?
No. The official IBCC portal states that only students enrolled in government or public schools are eligible under this scheme.
Is there a fixed marks percentage for eligibility?
No single percentage is printed on the portal. Each board sends its own list of top performers to IBCC, and that list decides who qualifies.
Are the Chromebooks new?
No. They are refurbished devices supplied through the Tokyo Technology Care Foundation under its agreement with the government, not brand-new devices.
What should I do if my record is not found?
Try your roll number or registration number instead of your CNIC or B-Form, using numbers only with no dashes. If it is still not found, contact your board directly.
Is there a last date to apply?
No single national deadline is printed on the portal. Boards set their own dates, so check your board’s notice and the portal itself before assuming the window is open or closed.
Disclaimer: PrimeUpdates.pk is an independent information website and is not affiliated with the government, the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme or IBCC. Always verify details on official sources before acting on them.
