Pakistan to support 15,000 undocumented migrants for Spain Regularisation Scheme

Salik Hussain says Pakistani citizens will get passports and other necessary documents within a week ahead of registration phase under Spanish scheme

ISLAMABAD: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-March 25th, 2026) The federal government on Wednesdayannounced measures to support Pakistani nationals for Spain Regularisation Scheme to legalise undocumented migrants, with around 15,000 Pakistanis expected to benefit alongside applicants from other countries.

A high-level meeting chaired by Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Salik Hussain reviewed ongoing arrangements related to the issuance of Spanish residency cards for Pakistani citizens.

The session was attended by State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry, senior officials including the Interior Secretary, Secretary for Overseas Pakistanis, Director General FIA, Additional Foreign Secretary, as well as representatives from NADRA and the passport department. Pakistan’s Ambassador to Spain Dr. Zahoor Ahmed, Consul General in Barcelona Muhammad Ali Wazir, and the Community Welfare Attaché participated via video link.

During the briefing, Salik Hussain stated that Pakistani citizens would be provided with passports and other necessary documents within a week ahead of the registration phase under the Spanish scheme.

He added that nearly 15,000 Pakistanis are likely to benefit from the initiative.

He thanked the Interior Ministry for its cooperation in facilitating overseas Pakistanis. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi emphasized that the prompt issuance of passports to citizens living abroad remains a priority for the government.

Naqvi directed that passports should not be issued to individuals with criminal convictions or those on wanted lists. He also instructed authorities to deploy additional staff at embassies to improve passport-related services.

The interior minister noted that the National Police Bureau has improved and accelerated the verification process for character certificates, which are now being issued on a priority basis.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to Spain and the Consul General in Barcelona informed the meeting that all relevant departments are coordinating closely to ensure timely access to essential documentation. They further said that the processing of both character certificates and passports has seen notable improvement, with around 10,000 authority letters already issued by Pakistan’s diplomatic mission in Spain.