The government has decided to gradually replace machine-readable passports with e-passports, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi announced on Friday, saying the move will enhance security, reduce fraud and improve travel convenience for citizens.
Chairing a meeting at the Passport and Immigration Headquarters, Naqvi said the transition to e-passports would help eliminate passport-related forgery and fraud. The meeting approved the move in principle, though no deadline was set for phasing out machine-readable passports.
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Officials informed the meeting that Pakistan’s e-passports comply with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and allow holders to use e-gates at airports around the world, reducing immigration processing times.
The meeting also decided that all passport offices will adopt a cashless payment system from July 1, replacing manual cash payments.
Director General Passports and Immigration Muhammad Ali Randhawa briefed the minister on ongoing reforms and said preparations for home delivery of passports within Pakistan and abroad had been completed.
Naqvi said the doorstep passport delivery service would be launched soon. He also directed authorities to finalize a policy for business passports in consultation with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
In addition, the Pak ID platform will be integrated into the online passport application process to simplify submissions and speed up processing.
