Police certificates for expatriates to be issued within 30 days

GCOP advises all provincial police depts to appoint focal persons for the purpose

ISLAMABAD: Grievance Commissioner for Overseas Pakistanis (GCOP) Hafiz Ahsaan Ahmad Khokhar at the Federal Ombudsman Secretariat has suggested finalising the police certificates for the expatriates within 30 days by coordinating with all government departments.

The Ministry of Interior on the advice of Khokhar directed all inspector generals of police to complete the police clearance certificates with a month and devise an automation mechanism for the purpose.

Furthermore, the GCOP advised all provincial police departments to appoint focal persons for the clearance certificates, submit monthly reports to the Federal Ombudsman Secretariat on the status of the clearance certificates and respond to the Pakistan missions.

Earlier, the GCOP had asked all foreign missions of Pakistan through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to submit regular monthly reports about the pendency of police certificates for overseas Pakistanis so that the matter could be expedited by the provincial police departments.

The initiative has provided relief to the overseas Pakistanis and until now, thousands of certificates have been dispatched by provincial police departments to the respective Pakistanis missions.

Earlier this month, Khokhar had also addressed the issue of passports and the National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (Nicop).

The grievance commissioner had said that the expatriates would receive their passports and identity cards at their respective missions and on their individual addresses across the world.

A statement issued by the ombudsman office stated that a large number of overseas Pakistanis had filed applications to the secretariat for delivery and issuance of passports and Nicops.

The expatriates had requested for the continuation and delivery of passports and Nicops to the respective missions for onward delivery.

Khokhar issued notices to the Ministry of Interior, director-general passports, and Nadra chairman for the submission of reports and to address the issues of overseas Pakistanis.

The representative of the DG passports informed the secretariat that delivery of passports had been started on both Pakistani missions and individual addresses of the overseas Pakistanis and so far 9,576 passports had been dispatched.

To avoid inconvenience to Pakistanis during the Covid-19 pandemic, the validity period of passports had been increased by one year as per orders of the Ministry of Interior.