July 1, 2005	Friday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 23, 1426

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RAWALPINDI, June 30: The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has asked Pakistan to provide details about its border managements, visa policy and immigration procedures, Dawn has learnt. A comprehensive 22-page questionnaire has been provided to Pakistan to respond on the issues. An IOM Assessment Team would later visit the country to gather more information about the border management processes and system.

Pakistan itself had asked the IOM to conduct the study. The IOM assessment team would inspect the physical facilities and equipment in Islamabad and various international points of entry into Pakistan and to collect relevant materials relating to the laws, policies and procedures operating in Pakistan and their application in an operational environment.

It would seek information regarding annual reports, organizational plans, departmental budget, staff establishment, qualifications and skills of staff, types of assets and conditions.

Further more the IOM team would get information regarding passenger movement, passports and citizenship data, relevant legislation, regulations, policies and procedures and previous donor-funded reports. In its questionnaire, the IOM has asked Pakistan to describe its processes for issuing visas, both onshore and offshore. Does Pakistan have a computer system for issuing visas? How many visa applications does Pakistan process and how many applications are refused per year.

Are the Pakistani passports machine-readable and do they comply with ICAO standards?

Is the record of all passports or other travel documents issued to a person kept?

The IOM has also asked Pakistan about its entry and exit permit policy. It has asked the types and how the entry and exit permits are issued per year.

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