DUBAI, April 12: UAE Ambassador to Pakistan, Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al Zaabi, stated that Pakistani citizens are now eligible for a five-year multiple-entry tourist visa following the resolution of previous issues. According to the official website of Dubai’s General Directorate of Identity and Foreigners Affairs, the five-year multiple-entry visa allows individuals to enter the UAE multiple times from the date of issuance without the need for a guarantor or local host.

This development was revealed during a meeting between Ambassador Al Zaabi and Sindh Governor Kamran Khan Tessori at the Governor’s House, as reported by Dawn. “Visa issues have been resolved; Pakistanis can now obtain a five-year visa,” Al Zaabi stated in a press release from the Governor House. He also invited the governor to visit the visa center at the UAE consulate in Karachi. Governor Tessori expressed his gratitude to the UAE envoy for the country’s investments in Sindh, particularly in Karachi. In response, the ambassador commended various development projects being implemented under the governor's initiatives.

Meanwhile, reports indicate that the UAE has recently intensified scrutiny of Pakistani nationals entering the country due to concerns about their alleged involvement in criminal activities, including begging. On December 23, a Senate committee was informed that all Pakistani travelers to the UAE must be vetted and verified by local police, with travel agents receiving related instructions.

At another Senate meeting held on January 9, the Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development clarified that there were no official restrictions on work visas for Pakistanis traveling to the UAE. However, it was noted that visit visas had been “unofficially suspended” over concerns that some visitors were misusing them.

In a separate interview with Geo News in November, UAE Consul-General in Karachi, Dr. Bakheet Ateeq Alremeithi, suggested that some visa rejections may be linked to inappropriate behavior on social media by certain Pakistani influencers, particularly on platforms like TikTok. He explained that such conduct has drawn criticism from the UAE authorities and led to tighter visa controls, though he emphasized that there is no official ban on issuing visas to Pakistanis.