PM Shehbaz orders expansion of digital services for overseas Pakistanis

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to expand digital consular services for overseas Pakistanis, improve facilities at Pakistani missions abroad, simplify the complaints system and speed up the digitization of document attestation and official transactions.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, the directives came during a meeting chaired by the prime minister in which officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pakistani ambassadors serving in various countries, and senior representatives from the Ministry of Interior, the Federal Investigation Agency, the Ministry of Information Technology and other relevant departments briefed him on ongoing reform efforts.

Shehbaz said overseas Pakistanis represent a valuable asset for the country and that providing them with every possible facility remains a top government priority.

Officials told the meeting that a QR code system has already been rolled out to simplify procedures for power of attorney, property transactions and document attestation for Pakistanis living abroad. The prime minister welcomed the initiative and directed authorities to prominently display the QR codes at Pakistani embassies and missions worldwide to improve access to the digital complaints registration system.

Shehbaz also instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to launch a dedicated awareness campaign encouraging overseas Pakistanis to use the QR code based system when filing complaints.

The meeting was told that the ministry has recently introduced an evening shift at its Islamabad office to make services more accessible to citizens, and that document attestation services have also been launched at the Asaan Khidmat Centre in Islamabad.

Officials further reported that the ministry has introduced courier based attestation services and linked its verification system with databases maintained by the Higher Education Commission, the Inter Boards Coordination Commission, the National Database and Registration Authority and the National Police Bureau, a step that has significantly cut processing times.

The meeting also heard that the apostille system has reduced document attestation to a single step process. Officials said work is now underway to fully digitize the system, with the National Information Technology Board developing a mobile application that would allow digital verification of documents including birth and death certificates, marriage registration certificates and family registration certificates, among other official records.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar attended the meeting alongside federal ministers Ahsan Iqbal Cheema, Attaullah Tarar, Chaudhry Salik Hussain and Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Minister of State Awn Chaudhry, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa and other senior officials.

The push to digitize consular services reflects a broader effort by the government to modernize public sector delivery and reduce bureaucratic delays, an initiative that has gained momentum in recent years as authorities look to integrate various state databases and cut down on the paperwork burden faced by citizens both at home and abroad.