ISLAMABAD: The foreign office said on Monday the United Arab Emirates (UAE) had not imposed a visa ban on Pakistani citizens hailing from ‘specific cities.’
The clarification was issued after media reports claimed UAE authorities were declining visas to Pakistani nationals from various cities across the country. According to one report, the decision was taken by the UAE after it was found that agents from certain cities in Pakistan were sending people to the Arab country on visit visas but promising them employment.
“We have seen the reports,” foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a statement quoted by state news agency the Associated Press of Pakistan. “We can confirm that no such ban is in place by UAE for issuance of visa to Pakistani citizens.”
Speaking to Geo News, the UAE consul general in Karachi also said no such ban had been imposed by his country’s government.
Pakistan has close ties with many Arab nations, especially Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which is the second largest labor market for Pakistan workers, after Saudi Arabia.
