The 12th Frontier Force Regiment was formed in 1922 as part of the British Indian Army. It consisted of five regular battalions; numbered 1 to 5 and the 10th (Training) Battalion. During the Second World War a further ten battalions were raised. In 1945, the prenominal "12th" was dropped when the British Indian Army dispensed with prenominal numbering of its regiments. After the independence in 1947, it was formed into the Frontier Force Regiment, part of the army of Pakistan.

The Frontier Force Regiment is one of the six infantry regiments of the Pakistan Army. They are popularly known as the Piffers in reference to their military history as the PIF of the British Indian Army, or as the FF. The regiment takes its name from the historic North-West Frontier, a former province of British India and later Pakistan.