LAHORE – As upgradation of the travel document continues across the world, the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports in Pakistan has started issuing e-passports, a highly secure travel document, to Pakistani citizens.

The e-passport features electronic chip embedded in one of the passport pages, which will be used to store biometric information about the holder. The chip contains data that will verify the passport holder’s identity and will include the biometrics of the passport holder, the personal data found on the data page of the passport, a unique identification number and a digital signature.

E-Passports are already in use in more than 150 countries worldwide. Several countries have switched to the e-Passport due to the increasing need for efficient and better border security.

Benefits of e-Passport

Pakistan e-Passport holders can benefit from the e-gate facility at all airports around the world. It will also help eliminate all the hurdles in the ongoing manual system and will aid Pakistani applicants to process online applications conveniently.

How to Get E-Passport?

The application process for the e-Passport is similar to acquiring a Machine Readable Passport (MRP).

The following conditions are mandatory for applying the e-Passport at RPOs :

First Name and Last Name are Required

First Name allowed up to 50 characters

Last Name allowed up to 40 characters

Relative (Father/Husband/Guardian) Name allowed up to 40 characters

E-Passport or Digital Passport Fee in Pakistan

As of October 2024, the normal fee for 36-page e-passport with five years validity stands at Rs9,000 while urgent fee for same passport is Rs15,000.

The normal fee for 36-page passport with 10 years validity stands at Rs13,500 while the urgent fee for it stands at Rs22,500.

Similarly, the department charges Rs16,500 in wake of normal fee for 72-page passport with five years validity while urgent fee for the same travel document stands at Rs27,000.

Furthermore, the urgent fee for 72-page passport with five years validity stands at Rs24,750 while it is Rs40,500 for 10 years validity.

The fee for the newly introduced Ordinary e-Passport is given below :