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Pakistan’s new visa processes in place and online applications accepted

Published

4 years ago

December 22, 2020

The Embassy of Pakistan in Kabul announced on Tuesday that changes to its visa processing system, that was announced in September, have been rolled out across the embassy and its consulates across the country.

A statement issued by the embassy noted that among the changes brought are an increase in the number of visa collection windows at the embassy and consulates; the introduction of a women’s only visa collection window; the introduction of an online visa application system; and separate windows at the embassy and consulates for medical, student and business visas.

Students are also now being issued with visas that are valid for the full duration of the time needed for their studies in Pakistan.

According to the embassy, Pakistan issued 150,000 visas in October and November as a result of these new “concrete measures.”

“Due to the above stated facilitative steps taken by the Embassy, we have been able to manage a large number of visa applicants in a dignified manner. In this regard, the Embassy would like to advise the visa applicants to come to the Embassy during visa hours in the morning where enough visa processing capacity is available to help them.

“The visa applicants do not need to wait for visas outside the Embassy during night hours. The Embassy and our Consulates will continue to process visas of Afghan nationals in a dignified and honorable way,” the statement read.

“It is further pointed out that visas for Afghan nationals except businessmen are without any fee. The Embassy reiterates that there is no visa agent needed for the Embassy. The applicants are advised not to pay any fee/charges in the name of facilitation to process a visa to any agents or middlemen.”

In the past, Afghan nationals would queue for hours, sometimes days, to get visas for Pakistan.

But in October, things took a serious turn when more than a dozen people were killed in a stampede after thousands of Afghans wanting visas had gathered outside Pakistan's consulate in Nangarhar province.

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Eleven people shot dead at shrine in Baghlan

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ariana News

Eleven people have been killed in a shooting at a shrine in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan province, local sources said on Friday.

The incident took place at 9 pm on Thursday at the shrine of Sayed Padsha Jan in Shahr-e-Kuhna of Nahrin district.

A local resident said the dead were residents of Nahrin district and wanted to spend the night at the shrine.

Asadullah Mustafa Hashemi, the provincial information and culture director, confirmed the incident but did not provide details on how it happened or the number of casualties.

Provincial police spokesman said they had not received any information about the incident yet.

Latest News

Chinese, Turkmen officials meet to discuss Afghanistan

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ariana News

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Serdar Muhammetdurdiyev on Thursday met with Chinese special envoy for Afghanistan, Yue Xiaoyong, the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan announced.

During the meeting, the sides discussed priority vectors of strategic interstate cooperation built on a long-term, mutually beneficial basis, as well as exchanged views on the implementation of previously reached agreements.

It was noted that personal contacts between the leaders of the two countries play a key role in intensifying the interstate dialogue, which give a strong impulse to further development and expansion of Turkmen-Chinese ties.

It was emphasized that Turkmenistan considers multilateral international platforms for maintaining stability in Afghanistan as an important factor in promoting sustainable improvement of socio-economic state of the neighboring country. The sides exchanged views on the preparations to the 5th meeting of Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan's Neighboring States to be held in Turkmenistan.

The interlocutors reaffirmed that Turkmenistan and China will continue to provide all-round support for the economic restoration of Afghanistan.

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U.S. House approves bill on evacuation of Afghan allies

Published

4 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ariana News

The U.S. House Of Representatives has passed a legislation on evacuation of Afghans who assisted Americans during the 20-year war in Afghanistan.

“The passage of the CARE Authorization Act of 2024 further underscores the commitment made by the U.S. government to safeguard those who served shoulder-to-shoulder with our personnel during the twenty-year mission in Afghanistan,” Congresswoman Dina Titus said in a statement.

“The State Department has made it clear: There is no deadline for the crucial job of protecting Afghan allies. By authorizing the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts at the State Department, we can more effectively relocate and resettle those who have qualified to immigrate to the U.S. as a result of their service to this country.”

In 2022 the State Department established a specialized office called the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (CARE) to streamline and coordinate the ongoing relocation and resettlement process for eligible Afghans from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the United States.

The CARE Authorization Act of 2024 will formally authorize the CARE office at the State Department for three years and grant important authorities to advance its mission. These include an extension of authorities to enter into personal services contracts as well as measures to streamline the transfer of funds to and from other agencies involved in the Afghan relocation mission.