At least one passport office will remain open 24/7 in Karachi and Lahore to provide ease to the people seeking Pakistani passports, announced Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday.

The minister in his social media post on X, said the move will make it easier for everyone to access passport services anytime.

With the implementation of this measure, individuals residing in Lahore and Karachi will have the flexibility to access passport services outside of regular business hours, accommodating diverse schedules and minimizing any inconvenience caused by time constraints.

The move is expected to significantly alleviate the burden on existing passport offices and reduce waiting times for applicants.

According to sources, over 800,000 passports are currently pending printing, but this backlog is expected to be cleared soon with the purchase of new machinery and lamination paper.

The Passport and Immigration authorities are currently printing 20-25,000 passports while receiving 40-45,000 applications daily.

On March 30, it was reported that applicants are facing unusual delays in the issuance of their Pakistani passports.

According to sources, over 5,50,000 passport applicants are facing two to three months of delays in the issuance of their passports.

Sources said that the Passport and Immigration Department failed to provide machine-readable and e-passports on time.