The United Arab Emirates has firmly refuted reports suggesting the imposition of a visa ban on Pakistani citizens.
In a statement to the media, the UAE ambassador clarified that no new restrictions have been introduced and described the circulating claims as inaccurate and misleading.
Pakistani envoy also rejects rumors
Similarly, Pakistan’s ambassador to the UAE, Shafqat Ali Khan, dismissed the speculation, confirming that Pakistani nationals are still being issued visas under standard procedures. According to the Foreign Office spokesperson, the confusion may have arisen due to outdated information used during a standing committee briefing, which was subsequently misinterpreted.
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No policy or legal changes
The Foreign Office further confirmed that the UAE has not implemented any new legislation or policy affecting visa issuance for Pakistanis. Travel and bilateral arrangements remain unchanged. In fact, on Thursday, the UAE introduced new visa facilitation measures for Pakistani citizens, including online processing and the issuance of e-visas without passport stamping. It was also disclosed that nearly 500 visa applications from Pakistani nationals are processed daily.
These developments were reiterated during a meeting between UAE Ambassador Salem M. Salem AlBawab Al Zaabi and Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb at the Finance Division on Thursday.