Pakistani passport

Pakistan formerly issued a special Hajj passport to Pakistani nationals making an Islamic pilgrimage known as Hajj to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. These are no longer issued, and ordinary Pakistani passports may now be used for this purpose. Prior to independence, a British Indian Passport was used.

British Indian Passport

• The opening cover end contains the following information:
  • Photo of passport holder
  • Type 'P'- stands for "Personal", 'D'- stands for "Diplomat", — S'- stands for "Service"
  • Country Code
  • Passport number
  • Surname
  • Given name
  • Nationality
  • Date of birth
  • Citizenship number
  • Gender
  • Place of birth
  • Father name
  • Date of issue
  • Date of expiry
  • Issuing authority
  • Tracking number
  • Booklet number
• First page of regular booklet contains the note from President of Pakistan (mentioned later).
• Second page mentions ANNOTATION on the top and contains the following
  • Religion
  • Previous passport number (if any)
  • Signature of the passport holder
• Third page declares that the passport is valid to travel to all countries of the world except Israel.

Back cover

The information on the inside back cover of a Pakistani passport states in Urdu only (English translation below):

ضوابط ۱- یہ پاسپورٹ حکومت پاکستان کی ملکیت ہے - بیرونی ممالک میں رائج امیگریشن ضوابط کی پابندی ہر حامل پاسپورٹ پر لازم ہوگی جن ممالک میں داخلے کے لئے ویزا حاصل کرنا ضروری ہو وہاں جانے سے پہلے ویزا حاصل کرنا چاہیے ۔ ۳- منسوخ شده یا زائدالمیعاد پاسپورٹ دوسال تک لے پاسپورٹ کے ساتھ رکھنا چاہئے کیونکہ زرمبادلہ کے لئے درخواست دیتے وقت شخص متعلقہ کو اس کی ضرورت پڑے گی ۔ گر پاسپورٹ کم یا ضائع ہو جاۓ تو پولیس اور پاکستان کے پاسپورٹ جاری کرنے والے قریب ترین دفترمیں فورا اطلاع کرنی چاہئے ۔ بیرونی ممالک میں ایسی اطلاع قریب ترین پاکستانی سفارت خانہ یا قونصل خانہ کو دی جائے ۔ ۵ - پاسپورٹ میں تبدیلی یا اضافہ وغیرہ صرف مجاز عہد یدار کرسکتا ہے ۔ قانون کی رو سے ایسے اشخاص موجب سزا قرار دیئے جا سکتے ہیں جو پاسپورٹ میں کسی قسم کی تبدیلی یا ردو بدل کر میں نیز ایسے لوگ بھی سزا کے مستحق ہیں جن کے قبضے میں ناجائز طور پر ایسا پاسپورٹ ہو جو انھیں قانونی طورسے نہ دیا گیا ہو ۔ ملک سے بذریعہ ڈاک یا کسی اور طریقے سے پاسپورٹ کسی دوسرے ملک بھیجنا قانونا جرم ہے ۔ رجسٹریشن بیرونی ممالک میں تین ماہ سے زیادہ قیام کرنے والے پاکستانی شہریوں پر لازم ہے کہ وہ قواعد شہرت پاکستان ۱۹۵۲ ء کے تحت ہر سال اپنا نام قریب ترین پاکستانی سفارت خانہ یا قونصل خانہ میں رجسٹر کرا لیا کریں پتہ کی تبدیلی اور ملک سے روانگی کی اطلاع سفارت خانہ یا قونصل خانہ کو دینی ضروری ہے ۔ نیز یہ کہ اگر بیرون ملک پاکستانی شہری کے کوئی بچہ پیدا ہو تو اس کا نام بھی قریب ترین پاکستانی سفارت خانہ یا قونصل خانہ میں مندرجہ بالا قواعد کے تحت رجسٹر کرائیں تاکہ بوقت ضرورت انھیں سفارت خانہ کی امداد اور مشورہ حاصل ہوسکے ۔

Regulations:

1. This passport is owned by the Government of Pakistan.
2. Compliance with the existing immigration regulations in foreign countries will be mandatory on every passport holder. One must obtain a visa before entering the countries for which it is necessary to obtain a visa.
3. Revoked or overdue passport should be kept with the passport for up to two years as the person concerned will need it while applying for foreign exchange.
4. If the passport is lost or wasted, the police and the nearest Pakistani passport issuing office should be notified immediately. Such information should be given to the nearest Pakistani embassy or consulate in foreign countries.
5. Only authorized officer can change or add to the passport. According to the law, persons can be punished according to the change or alteration of their passport, as well as those who have a passport in their possession which is not given to them legally.
6. It is a criminal offence to send a passport from one country to another by mail or otherwise.

Registration: Pakistani citizens residing in foreign countries for more than three months are required to register their name at the nearest Pakistani embassy or consulate every year under the Pakistan Rules of Reputation 1952. Change of address and departure from the country information must be given to the embassy or consulate. Also, if any child of a Pakistani citizen is born abroad, his name should be registered in the nearest Pakistani embassy or consulate under the above rules so that he can get the help and advice of the embassy in case of need.

301 Shares The Henley Passport Index (HPI) — an annual global ranking of countries according to the travel freedom of their citizens – placed the Pakistani passport at #102 in its 2019 list of most and least powerful passports of the world list.

HPI has been compiling and issuing this list since 2006 which ranks and lists passports from over a hundred countries according to the number of destinations the citizens of these countries can visit without obtaining a visa.

Pakistan's passport has continuously found itself lingering in the bottom half of the list. Even though global passport rankings were introduced in 2006, it is believed that if the strength of the country's passport before 2006 was to be explored by using the HPI ranking and scoring model, the Pakistani passport – from 1961 till 1974 – would have been one of the top 30 passports of the world.

Pakistani Passport HPI Rankings 2006 to 2022.

• 2006: 79
• 2007: 83
• 2008: 87
• 2009: 89
• 2010: 90
• 2011: 99
• 2012: 100
• 2013: 91
• 2014: 92
• 2015: 103
• 2016: 103
• 2017: 102
• 2018: 103
• 2019: 103
• 2020: 102
• 2021: 102
• 2022: 110
• 2023: 90

The passports contain a note from the President of Pakistan addressing the authorities of all states, identifying the bearer as a citizen of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and requesting and requiring that the bearer be allowed to pass freely without any hindrance and be assisted and protected in any need. The note inside of Pakistani passports states:

Ministry of Interior, Government of Pakistan requires & requests in the name of President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan all those to whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary.

Director General Immigration & Passports.