Online visa application for Pakistan witnesses manifold increase
- By Web Desk -
- Jan 25, 2021
ISLAMABAD: Online applications for Pakistani visas from travelers and tourists have witnessed a manifold increase after the facility was initially launched by the government for limited countries, ARY NEWS reported.
The tourists and other visitors are taking a keen interest in availing from the facility.
It emerged that in January 2020, the number of requests for e-visas stood at 7,749 while the number of requests rose to 31,197 during the same month of 2021.
In March 2019, Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated Pakistan’s online visa regime for foreign nationals and said that issuance of online visas for foreigners was the first step towards ‘Naya Pakistan’.
He stated that issuing online document was a significant step towards bringing real change as it would open the country to the outside world. Prime Minister Khan said it also would show that Pakistan is a peaceful and stable country and open to the world for business and tourism.
The visa facility developed by National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) is similar to the systems running in the US and UK.
Read More: Pakistan’s online visa service kicks off for European tourists
The comprehensive online mechanism for the e-visa facility was initially dedicated to the residents hailing from 175 countries. It follows the modern system for issuance of e-visa and on-arrival visas within a short span of three months.
However, later in January this year, Federal Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed announced that Pakistan has extended online visa facility to 192 countries.