ISLAMABAD – The Directorate General of Immigration and Passports (DGIP) has approved the issuance of blue passports for 42 high-tax-paying individuals who have been designated as “ambassadors at large” on the instructions of the Prime Minister, DGIP Director General Muhammad Ali Randhawa said on Tuesday.
He said the majority of the approved blue passports have already been issued.
According to him, a proposal is also under consideration to introduce specially coloured passports for businesspersons contributing taxes above a certain threshold. The plan is being reviewed in consultation with the Ministry of Commerce and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The DGIP chief said the department is also moving ahead with a series of reforms aimed at improving passport services, including the introduction of home delivery of passports and the launch of a digital chatbot to assist applicants.
He said talks are underway with a courier company to facilitate doorstep delivery of passports. Once the agreement is finalised, applicants opting for the service will be able to receive passports at their home addresses from Islamabad against nominal delivery charges.
He added that the facility would later be extended to overseas Pakistanis in a phased manner.
Randhawa said a chatbot service is also being developed to provide applicants with guidance on documentation, application procedures, and real-time status tracking. He said the initiative would help reduce workload on call centres, which are also being expanded.
He further said that authorities are seriously considering the introduction of an online passport application system. Options under review include a dedicated mobile application similar to the NADRA Pak-ID platform or integration with existing NADRA services.
Under the proposed system, applicants will be able to upload required documents, including photographs and previous passport copies, through a mobile application and receive notifications in case additional information is required.
Officials said the digital system would allow 24/7 application submission from anywhere while also addressing staffing constraints within the department.
Randhawa also announced that after June 30, passport fee payments will no longer be accepted through National Bank branches. A fully cashless payment system will be introduced to reduce human interference and eliminate middlemen.
He said applicants will be issued QR-coded tokens, which will enable payments through mobile banking applications, marking a shift toward a fully digitised and transparent passport fee system.
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