To enjoy full rights in any country you need to be a citizen of that particular country, each country has its own procedure and method of citizenship. Pakistan is among those countries where the laws and procedure for getting citizenship is very easy though there are problems during implementation.
Citizenship can be acquired in Pakistan through 4 categories:
- By birth
- By descent
- By migration
- By grant
1) Citizen By Birth:
If you are born in Pakistan, or your parents and grandparents were born here before the commencement of Pakistan Citizenship Act, 1951 then you are entitled for the citizenship. There are few exceptions, such as:
- The children of foreign diplomats born in Pakistan.
- Children of enemy & alien countries.
- People who migrated from Pakistan to other areas of Indo-Pak after March 1947 for permanent residential.
2) Citizen By Descent:
Children born outside of Pakistan but have parents who are Pakistani citizens will also be considered citizens of Pakistan. If the parents are citizens by descent then they have to register the child in nearest consulate or Pakistani mission. It also includes children born to Pakistani mother and foreign father, only after 18.04.2004.
3) Citizen by Migration:
People who migrated to Pakistan from other areas of Indo-Pak before commencement of Pakistan Citizenship Act, 1951 are also citizens of Pakistan.
4) Grant of Citizenship:
There are other people who can apply for Pakistani citizenship though they are not born in Pakistan, they include:
- Foreign ladies married to Pakistani men.
- Citizens who transferred Rs 5 million in Pakistan.
- Children of Pakistani citizen below the age of 21 years.
- People holding Naturalization certificate.
For further details, requirements and forms visit the official portal of Directorate General of immigration and Passports.
How to apply for Citizenship:
If you fall in any of the above categories then you can apply for Pakistani citizenship by following these steps:
- Visit Directorate General of immigration and Passports Islamabad or regional office and obtain the application form.
- Submit the complete form with required documents at Directorate General of immigration and Passports or regional office.
- The application will be processed and the applicant will be informed if any discrepancy occurs. After successful process a certificate will be issued which need verification from some departments.
- After successful verification & due process the Citizenship certificate will be issued through Directorate General of immigration and Passports or regional office.
Some social media users faced problem while acquiring or renewing their National Identity Cards (NIC).