Pakistan to issue only electronic passports

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan will gradually transition to issuing only electronic passports (e-passports), while cash payments for passport fees will be abolished from July 1 in favour of a QR code-based digital payment system as part of a broader drive to modernise passport services and improve public convenience.

The decisions were taken during a high-level meeting chaired by Director General Immigration and Passports Muhammad Ali Randhawa at the Directorate General headquarters in Islamabad.

Convened on the instructions of Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, the meeting was attended by all zonal heads and senior officials to review the roadmap for upcoming reforms, their implementation, and measures to make passport services faster, easier and more efficient for applicants.

The DG also sought recommendations from zonal heads on further improving passport services. Officials were informed that, from July 1, 2026, all passport offices across the country would discontinue cash fee collection and accept payments exclusively through QR codes.

The meeting was informed that the Directorate General Immigration and Passports would soon launch a dedicated a passport mobile app, enabling Pakistani citizens both at home and abroad to apply for passports online from their homes.

Applicants will also be able to receive their passports at their doorstep, with TCS and DHL engaged to provide delivery services.

Officials said the initiative would significantly reduce congestion at passport offices.

The meeting further decided that the Directorate General Immigration and Passports would, in future, issue only e-passports as part of a phased transition from Machine Readable Passports (MRPs) in line with International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) guidelines.