KARACHI (Web Desk) December 17, 2025 — The Director-General of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) told the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Rights that the Pakistani passport has climbed from 118th to 92nd in global ranking this year.
The FIA chief attributed the improvement to the offloading of 51,000 passengers from flights for irregularities. He said around 24,000 Pakistanis were deported from Saudi Arabia for begging or attempting to travel to Europe under the pretext of performing Umrah.
In addition, 6,000 Pakistanis were deported from Dubai and 2,500 from Azerbaijan, primarily for begging. According to the FIA, 24,000 Pakistanis traveled to Cambodia this year, with 12,000 still unaccounted for, while 4,000 went to Myanmar on tourist visas, of which 2,500 have not returned.
The FIA DG also highlighted a case involving a fake football club that sent a team to Japan, including a physically disabled person who was not a footballer. Pakistani authorities also discovered Bangladeshi nationals using Pakistan as a transit route to illegally reach Europe on tourist visas.
The FIA chief said these measures are aimed at curbing illegal travel and human trafficking, which he claims contributed to the rise in the passport’s reported international ranking.
