UAE Ambassador, Finance Minister Aurangzeb discuss major visa reforms for Pakistanis

In a bid to facilitate Pakistanis, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has introduced major visa reforms, including online processing, e-visas without passport stamping, and a new visa centre, enabling nearly 500 visas to be processed daily.

The development was disclosed during a meeting between H.E. Salem M. Salem AlBawab Al Zaabi, the new Ambassador of the UAE to Pakistan, with Muhammad Aurangzeb, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, at the Finance Division on Thursday.

The meeting commenced with Ambassador Al Zaabi noting the deep historical linkages between the peoples of Pakistan and the UAE, highlighting the longstanding contributions of Pakistani professionals across sectors in the UAE, including banking, finance, defence, and public administration.

He underscored that strengthening bilateral ties, particularly in strategic, economic, and cultural dimensions, would be a key priority of his tenure.

Aurangzeb welcomed the UAE envoy and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to further deepening its fraternal partnership with the UAE, read a statement.

During the meeting, the UAE official also briefed the minister on the UAE government’s major reforms in visa facilitation for Pakistani nationals.

He stated that nearly 500 visas are being processed daily and explained that new measures, including online visa processing, e-visas without passport stamping, and enhanced system-to-system linkages with relevant Pakistani authorities, are being implemented to further streamline travel for businesspersons and visitors.

Meanwhile, a dedicated UAE visa centre, newly opened in Pakistan, will also help expedite processing.

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Aurangzeb welcomed these developments, noting that smoother mobility is crucial for strengthening business-to-business exchanges, especially given the UAE’s position as a global hub for investment, trade shows, and technology exhibitions, read the statement.

UAE remains one of the top locations where Pakistani workers are employed. Saudi Arabia and Oman are the top choices for emigrating labour from Pakistan.

Meanwhile, the finance minister acknowledged the UAE’s consistent support to Pakistan across multiple fronts, including trade, investment, remittances, government-to-government financing, and the UAE’s crucial backing in Pakistan’s engagements with international financial institutions. He further noted the frequent high-level interactions between the leadership of both countries as a testament to their close and enduring ties.

The minister emphasised that Pakistan’s economic policy direction is firmly oriented toward expanding trade and attracting long-term investment, moving beyond traditional support mechanisms.

He appreciated ongoing UAE investments in key sectors such as ports, digital banking, logistics, and infrastructure and encouraged further participation from UAE sovereign funds, private-sector entities, and multinational corporations. He highlighted Pakistan’s significant potential in IT, AI, fintech, agriculture, minerals, logistics, and higher education collaboration.

Al Zaabi informed that expanding economic cooperation remains one of his foremost objectives.

He expressed the UAE’s strong interest in enhancing bilateral trade volumes, attracting Pakistani businesses and technology firms to the UAE, and bringing more UAE investors to Pakistan. He referenced ongoing engagement with companies in sectors including agriculture, infrastructure, mining, ports, financial services, and virtual assets.

The meeting also touched upon ongoing defence cooperation, training exchanges, and historical military collaboration between the two countries, with Ambassador Al Zaabi expressing a strong commitment to further enhancing them during his tenure.