Pakistan’s Additional Interior Secretary, Salman Chaudhry, has said that the UAE is currently not issuing visas to most Pakistani citizens. He shared this update during a meeting of the Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights. According to him, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have not officially banned Pakistani passports, but both countries have become extremely strict. He also warned that if a complete ban is ever imposed, it would be very difficult to get it reversed.
The official explained that right now, the UAE is only giving visas to people who hold blue or diplomatic passports, while normal applicants are facing refusals. Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri also confirmed this situation and said that only a few visas were issued recently, and that too after a lot of difficulty. She added that authorities in the UAE have concerns about some Pakistanis going there and getting involved in criminal activities.
However, a senior diplomat from the UAE embassy rejected the rumours circulating on social media. He said that “there is no ban on UAE visa for Pakistanis” and visas are still being processed.
The same day UAE Ambassador to Pakistan, Salem M. Salem Al Bawab Al Zaabi, visited the Minister of Finance, Muhammad Aurangzeb and informed him about the new visa facilitation reforms to be offered to Pakistani nationals. As per the information presented in the meeting, the UAE is also launching online visa processing, e-visas without a stamped passport, and accelerated computerized systems. The UAE Visa Centre in Pakistan is processing close to 500 visas every day.
The ambassador hailed the role of Pakistanis operating in the UAE and hoped to develop more relations in terms of trade, investment, technology and culture. Both parties accepted to keep working together and finding new opportunities.
Pakistanis have been experiencing a number of visa related challenges in recent years. In the first half of the year, several applicants were rejected, which led to the discussion of the issue by the Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi with the UAE officials. He asked for the softening of the visa policies, and the authorities of the UAE promised to help him. In April, the UAE Ambassador announced that the visa could be resolved and the Pakistanis could request a five-year visa. But later on there were visa issues again.
Some UAE officials earlier expressed concerns that certain Pakistanis entering on visit visas end up begging or violating rules, which has made the visa process stricter. Despite this, Pakistani officials maintain that there is no restriction on work visas.
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