Pakistan taking strict measures to discourage passenger with not valid documents
Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has
offloaded 66,154 passengers from airports this year, nearly doubling last
year’s figure of 35,000, officials told a parliamentary committee on Wednesday.
The increase is attributed to intensified government measures against illegal
migration.
The disclosure came during a session
of the Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource
Development, chaired by Syed Rafiullah. The meeting followed complaints from
passengers claiming they were denied travel despite holding valid documents.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
earlier this month formed a 14-member committee, led by the federal minister
for overseas Pakistanis, to review offloading cases and recommend ways to
streamline immigration procedures.
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“The director-general of FIA reported that 66,154 passengers were offloaded this year, compared to 35,000 last year,” Rafiullah told Arab News.
FIA Director-General Riffat Mukhtar
explained that about 51,000 passengers were stopped due to questions regarding
the authenticity of their travel documents, which included work, tourist, and
Umrah visas. “The surge in offloading is part of a countermeasure against
fraudulent migration rings,” Mukhtar said.
The crackdown also targets misuse of
Umrah visas. Mukhtar reported that 56,000 individuals involved in organized
begging were deported from Saudi Arabia during 2025. Additionally, stricter
restrictions in the UAE and new illegal migration routes toward Africa, Europe,
and Southeast Asia—including Cambodia and Thailand—have contributed to the
higher number of offloaded passengers.
“Passengers are offloaded after
document verification, data checks, and online authentication,” Mukhtar added,
stressing that no passenger was cleared due to political influence or VIP
pressure.
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The committee urged the FIA to ensure enforcement is balanced with a robust redressal mechanism for passengers wrongly offloaded. “There must be a mechanism and SOP for addressing cases where Pakistanis are offloaded incorrectly. Enforcement without an accessible remedy harms both citizens and the country’s reputation,” Rafiullah said.
The Ministry of Interior, FIA, and
Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis were instructed to immediately make standard
operating procedures and complaint mechanisms available at all airport immigration
counters.
The committee also reviewed the
operations of the Community Welfare Attaché (CWA) network in Gulf countries,
responsible for assisting Pakistani migrant workers. CWAs handled over 55,000
welfare cases in 2025, including repatriations, issuance of emergency travel
documents, prison visits, and legal aid.
Officials informed the committee
that a risk-analysis unit has been established, and a mobile application called
IMMI is under development to enhance pre-departure screening and real-time
monitoring of immigration counters. Members recommended linking FIA systems
with the E-Protector platform to complete “ok-to-board” checks before
passengers reach airports.
In 2025, approximately 8.5 million
Pakistanis traveled abroad, while 226 immigration-related offenses were
recorded. In the past three months alone, 450 individuals attempting illegal
entry into Iran were arrested, and several Bangladeshi nationals on Pakistani
tourist visas were caught trying to enter Europe illegally.
Source: Arab News