Pakistan revokes visa on arrival privilege for Afghan nationals

Afghan refugees queue up in Peshawar with identity cards in hand. (AFP/File)

• Provision would grant refugees 30-day permit at entry points
• Move follows increased security risks from the western border, FIA says

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday revoked a long-standing facility which would grant a visa-on-arrival to Afghan nationals, thereby restricting their movement within the country and halting visa issuance at airports and border crossings.
“Previously, Afghan nationals were being granted 30-day visas on arrival at entry points. As the new policy comes into effect, they will be required to apply for a visa from Pakistani missions in Afghanistan,” Ismatullah Junejoid, the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) Immigration Director, said. “The move comes due to increased security risks emanating from the western border,” he added.
Earlier, Afghan nationals holding Afghan passports and living in Pakistan were allowed a visa extension for a period of six months with one re-entry. “Afghan origin/third country passports holders are initially granted 45-days visa by our missions abroad except the Pakistan Mission in Afghanistan. They are allowed a further extension for 45-days,” information on the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports website reads.
Prime Minister Imran Khan had pledged granting citizenship to approximately 1.5 million Afghan refugees and their children who had been residing in or were born in Pakistan.
“Afghans whose children have been raised and born in Pakistan will be granted citizenship Inshallah (God willing) because this is the established practice in countries around the world,” the PM had said.
“They are humans. How come we have deprived them and have not arranged for offering them national identification card and passport for 30 years, 40 years?”
According to the United Nations (UN), Pakistan has the largest population of refugees in the world, of which 2.7 million are Afghan nationals. The UN surveys estimate that 60 percent of the Afghan refugee population is Pakistan-born.
Speaking to a private television channel (Express News), Junejo explained that a total of 24 countries were now being given the on-arrival visa facility. These countries include Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Belgium, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Norway, New Zealand, United States, United Kingdom, Thailand, Spain, and Singapore.