The cost of a new passport in Pakistan has nearly doubled as authorities stop issuing machine-readable passports and move all new applications to e-passports.
The normal fee for a five-year, 36-page passport has risen from Rs4,500 to Rs9,000 while the urgent fee has gone up from Rs7,500 to Rs15,000. A five-year, 72-page e-passport now costs Rs16,500 under normal processing and Rs27,000 under urgent processing.
Under the new rules that apply nationwide, the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports, from Oct 15, is accepting new applications only for e-passports that carry an electronic chip storing the holder’s biometric and personal data.
Passport authorities say e-passports cost more to produce because they use modern technology, and they set the new fees to match those costs.
Machine-readable passports that citizens already hold remain valid until they expire, officials said.
