June 30, 2026
By Hafiz Ullah Storai Sherani
ISLAMABAD
A new policy and notification which has set a fresh deadline for Afghans who are overstaying their welcome in Pakistan, has left Afghan nationals with a massive challenge: that of renewing visas. (UNHCR) stated
The directive was issued on Sunday by the Ministry of Interior to immediately arrest any Afghan national found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa, with crackdowns beginning from 10 July, 2026.
The notification addressing the chief secretaries of all provinces including those in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and the chief commissioner of Islamabad Capital Territory, said that the directive referred to the decisions taken during a review meeting on the Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan (IFRP) on June 1.
It said that during the meeting all provincial governments, as well as special area governments, and the ICT Administration were directed to expedite the repatriation/deportation of Afghan nationals including visa overstay cases, and to ensure strict implementation of the IFRP.
Speaking to Voicepk, Qaiser Afridi the spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said, “The biggest problem at the moment is that among those already present here, many have expired visas but they do not get them renewed by the government which further increases their difficulties. Apart from visa holders if anyone possesses a PoR or any other card, or those who arrived in Pakistan after 2021, have all been declared illegal by Pakistan. This also includes many of those whose visas have expired and are not being extended leading to them being categorized as illegal.”
The notification added that the necessary directions might therefore be issued to all deputy commissioners, district administrations, police, and other law enforcement agencies concerned to ensure uniform and effective implementation of these directions. It included a report detailing the number of Afghan nationals found without valid visas the action taken against them and their present status be furnished to this ministry on a daily basis commencing 11 July 2026. The matter may be accorded top priority and compliance ensured in letter and spirit, the notification said.
According to media reports millions of Afghans have poured into Pakistan over the past several decades fleeing successive wars as well as hundreds of thousands who arrived after the return of the Taliban government in 2021 A deportation drive first launched in 2023 was renewed in April last year when the government rescinded hundreds of thousands of residence permits for Afghans warning them of arrests if they did not leave
Commenting on the ground-level impact of the policy UNHCR spokesperson Qaiser Afridi also weighed in.
“Since December 2023 under the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan 2.4 million people have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan over the past three years,” he said. “Most of them are undocumented while there are also PoR card holders. Many left voluntarily and several families have been deported. Even today people are leaving mostly via the Torkham route. From the UNHCR volunteer repatriation center in Nowshera (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), around 1000 to 1500 Afghans leave on a daily basis. Additionally we have a point in Landi Kotal and a center near Nasir Bagh in Peshawar where their return processes are handled.”
In the midst of this situation Afghan students studying in Pakistan are facing severe distress Rahimna an Afghan female student studying at a prominent semi-government university in Islamabad shared her experience with Voicepk.
According to Rahimna the Islamabad Police arrested her along with two other Afghan female students They pleaded with the police sayithat this was their final semester and that their final exams were just a few days away which meant all their hard work would go to waste. However the officials refused to listen. Later the president of the university’s student organization issued a surety letter to the police.
The guarantee letter stated that these Afghan students are currently enrolled in the university and after their final exams the university will award them their degrees and remove them from the hostel if they fail to renew their visas. Upon receiving this written guarantee the police released the three students.
Considering this academic and humanitarian crisis the UNHCR has urged the Government of Pakistan to grant relief to specific vulnerable categories Qaiser Afridi explained the organization’s stance
“Our position is that these people should be sent back voluntarily and phase-wise, especially those who face various risks or threats to their lives in Afghanistan,” he said. “They should be supported instead of being sent back. This particularly includes journalists, ethnic and religious minorities and those who have worked with previous governments. Similarly students who are currently studying in pakistan and whose semesters are ongoing should be spared and exempted from this policy. Furthermore those who have married here or came for medical reasons should also be spared. The government has initiated strict measures but in this situation we maintain that since Pakistan has hosted Afghan refugees for nearly 46 years it should show a little more patience and tolerance now”
On the other hand according to data cited in media reports a Senate Standing Committee on Kashmir Affairs Gilgit-Baltistan and States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) was informed that Pakistan deported a total of 1,155,221 Afghan nationals in 2025 Top officials of the Ministry of Interior and Chief Commissionerate for Afghan Refugees told the meeting that the repatriated Afghans included 163,429 proof of registration (PoR) card holders 74,943 Afghan citizen card (ACC) holders 509,671 undocumented individuals and 407,178 voluntary returnees
These crackdowns and enforcement actions have also raised significant concerns among Afghan journalists residing in Islamabad. Ehsanullah an Afghan journalist based in Islamabad discussed the situation with Voicepk.
“The issue lies between the governments of the two countries with mutual allegations and a warlike environment,” he said “However the most painful aspect of this is that such steps, notifications and deportation processes by the governments threaten to widen the distance between the people of both countries If this gap widens and turns into hatred what will be the point of any subsequent efforts by the governments Currently there is not a single part of Islamabad or Pakistan where Afghans are not being apprehended It used to be said that Afghan refugees in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were not harassed or arrested but the reality is that our people are being arrested and deported from there as well In my view Afghanistan is currently the only neighbor that is a well-wisher of Pakistan in every respect and Afghans certainly realize that Pakistan has given them a lot”
To ascertain the stance of the KP government Voicepk sent messages and made calls via mobile and WhatsApp to provincial government spokesperson Shafi Jan but no response was received by the time of filing this report
Media reports referencing international refugee data highlighted that according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) the repatriations appear to have picked up pace in the current year with nearly 150,000 Afghans returning home from Pakistan and Iran by mid-February 2026 These returns added to the 5.4 million Afghans who have gone back to Afghanistan from the same two neighboring countries since October 2023 signaling a massive humanitarian crisis
Reflecting on this humanitarian crisis and Pakistan’s legal commitments Mudassar Javed head of SHARP (Society for Human Rights and Prisoners’ Aid) shared his views with Voicepk
“Afghanistan and Afghans have seen nothing but destruction displacement and death making them extremely vulnerable populations There are approximately 300,000 highly vulnerable Afghans in Pakistan including men and women who have married here Many do not possess documents from either here or Afghanistan this is a large group that remains stateless which will become a problem for both countries in the future. Right now Afghanistan is facing a severe humanitarian crisis because there are no jobs no work no education and no housing. Millions of people there are homeless In such circumstances Pakistan being a large country should show magnanimity and establish a formal organized mechanism for these Afghans that aligns with national and international laws and commitments rather than contradicting them.”
Meanwhile Mudassar Javed spoke about the attitudes of both governments and unfulfilled past promises.
“It shouldn’t be that governments of different countries enact laws and issue notifications against each other solely based on their own calculations,” he said. “We request Pakistan to consider the third generation of Afghans born here. We can further document them and provide them with jobs and work in Pakistan. We can’t change our neighbours so we must make all decisions after discussions with all stakeholders instead of acting in haste. In 2017 Pakistan said it would start a visa regime register the unregistered and draft a national refugee law but it has still not been implemented to this day. We welcome any law or notification that aligns with national international and human rights frameworks.”
Concurrently official data regarding the reception and condition of returnees across the border is being shared by the Afghan Taliban government. According to the daily operational report dated Monday June 22 2026 issued by the Secretariat of the High Commission for Addressing Returnees’ Issues operating under the Hamdullah Fitrat, the Deputy Spokesman of the Afghan Taliban government, essential services in registration, transportation, financial aid, healthcare, and public awareness were provided to forcibly returned Afghan refugees across various entry points.
The report detailed overall figures showing 394 families (2,140 individuals) registered 492 families (2,767 individuals) relocated 63 families assisted and 394 SIM cards distributed
The regional breakdowns of this operational data are as follows:
Nangarhar – Torkham (Durand Line): A total of 305 families comprising 1,707 individuals returned through Torkham and were registered by the Registration Verification and Reception Committee. The Transport and Relocation Committee transferred 336 families (1,876 individuals) from Torkham to Nangarhar Kunar Laghman and Kabul provinces disbursing AFN 1,599,380 for transit costs. At Omari Camp the Services and Health Affairs Committee provided healthcare and telecom services distributing 367 active SIM cards while the Information Committee provided guidance regarding temporary shelter.
Kandahar – Spin Boldak (Durand Line): A total of 33 families comprising 199 individuals returned through Spin Boldak and were registered. The Financial Affairs Management Committee provided aid totaling AFN 334,000 to 39 families while the Services Committee distributed 298 meals and 26 SIM cards alongside health provisions.
Nimroz – Silk Bridge Crossing: A total of 33 families comprising 146 individuals and 867 passengers returned via the Silk Bridge route and were registered. Financial assistance totaling AFN 6,000 was provided to 1 family while 503 individuals received medical treatment and 1 SIM card was distributed.
Herat – Islam Qala and Kabul: A total of 23 families comprising 88 individuals returned through Islam Qala and were registered receiving AFN 166,000 in financial aid Similarly the Transport Committee provided AFN 531,300 to transfer 156 families (891 individuals) from Kabul to various provinces