.
ISLAMABAD:
The National Assembly Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis has expressed concern over persistent consular and administrative shortcomings at Pakistani missions across Europe, and has called for urgent improvements in welfare facilitation, verification systems and passport-related services.
Meeting under the chairmanship of Syed Rafiullah, the committee reviewed the nationwide performance reports of community welfare attachés (CWAs) working under the Ministry of External Affairs.
During deliberations, members noted recurring operational problems in Pakistani missions in Italy, Spain and Greece, including cases of lost passports, delays in verification and limited outreach in prison welfare services.
In Italy, officials reported a large Pakistani community and progress following a 2025 bilateral memorandum of understanding (MoU), which included the allocation of 3,500 jobs, of which 1,500 were non-seasonal.
However, the committee was informed that challenges remain related to outstanding work visas, repeated complaints of lost passports and verification delays in some provinces, particularly where online national status verification is not fully integrated.
The Spanish mission briefed the committee on efforts to regularize the documentation of Pakistani residents following a prolonged vacancy in the post of social assistance attaché. The authorities said they intend to regularize about 20,000 applicants of the almost 140,000 Pakistanis residing in Spain.
Committee members highlighted procedural obstacles, especially delays in apostille certification, difficulties in obtaining verification from the National Police Bureau (NPB), and recurring passport losses.
