The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) in Pakistan has clarified that the facility to apply for a first-time identity card (ID) through the Pak ID app on the basis of a Form B or Child Registration Certificate (CRC) has not been discontinued.
The service remains available to applicants whose required biometric records are already available to NADRA.
NADRA clarifies that under existing rules, the authority has to obtain and securely retain an applicant’s photograph, fingerprints and iris record before issuing an identity card.
However, many older Form B records were created at a time when children’s complete biometric information was not routinely collected.
As a result, some applicants may have a record in NADRA’s database but lack the full set of biometric data required for the issuance of a first-time ID card.
In such cases, the Pak ID application cannot be completed entirely online. Applicants must visit a NADRA Registration Centre once to provide the missing biometric information.
For convenience, NADRA advises applicants to use Pak ID to obtain an appointment at a NADRA Registration Centre.
Those whose photograph, fingerprints and iris records are already linked to their CRC or Form B in NADRA’s system can continue to apply for their first identity card through Pak ID without visiting a registration center.
NADRA said the requirement is intended to ensure compliance with identity-card regulations, protect the integrity of national identity and biometric databases, and reduce the risk of fraud or identity misuse.
NADRA also said overseas Pakistanis can continue to apply through Pak ID for a National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) for their children on the basis of their Form B.
Overseas Pakistanis are advised to have their children’s biometric records updated at the earliest opportunity, either at a NADRA office or NADRA counter at a Pakistani embassy or consulate abroad, or when visiting Pakistan.