The Ministry of Interior has said no proposal to reduce passport fees is under consideration, after revealing that the government collected Rs219.931 billion in passport fees between the 2021-22 and 2025-26 financial years.
In a written response to a question by Senator Talha Mahmood, the ministry provided a year-wise breakdown of the revenue. It collected Rs21.618 billion in 2021-22, Rs34.495 billion in 2022-23 and Rs50.906 billion in 2023-24. Collections rose to Rs64.392 billion in 2024-25, then stood at Rs48.52 billion in 2025-26.
The authorities have discontinued machine-readable passports and now issue only e-passports on all new applications across the country. The change has nearly doubled the cost of a new passport. The normal fee for a five-year, 36-page passport has risen from Rs4,500 to Rs9,000, while the urgent fee has increased from Rs7,500 to Rs15,000.
The new fees apply in Lahore and the rest of the country. Machine-readable passports already issued will remain valid until their expiry dates.
According to the report, the former fast-track fee for a machine-readable passport was Rs12,500, compared with Rs22,000 for the equivalent e-passport. Fees for 72-page passports will rise in the same proportion.
