Pakistan’s mission in Riyadh on Saturday expressed its concern over the Pakistani nationals continuously reaching Saudi Arabia for work on ‘Azad’ visas which renders them illegal for work.
According to the sources in the ministry of foreign affairs, Pakistan’s mission in Riyadh has written a letter to the Bureau of Immigration and Overseas Employment stating that a request is being made to Saudi government to devise a scheme for enabling the ‘out of status’ Pakistanis in Saudi Arabia and to adjust their status or repatriated without incurring penalties. The letter also lamented that the practice of ‘Azad’ visas is still going on even at a time when the Pakistani government is striving for the settlement of illegal Pakistanis already there.
The mission has recommended the bureau to verify work visas with Pak mission in Riyadh and Jeddah so that ‘Azad’ visa practice could be checked in future. According to the mission, close to 800,000 Pakistanis had been beneficiaries of the amnesty and 729,932 have successfully corrected their status by October 10 this year. The same matter was also pointed out by the prime minister secretariat in July this year and instructions were issued to the federal investigation authority (FIA) for making all efforts for curbing the matter, the sources concluded.
