THIS refers to the online computerised passport renewal facility which is a joint effort by the passport department and Nadra which should have been started in March 2016.

If I have to travel from Adelaide to Canberra for passport renewal with my seven-year-old child, it will cost me about $1,200 other than passport fee. Canberra is more or less 1,500km from Adelaide.

It includes return air tickets from Adelaide to Canberra for two persons ($800), and stay in a hotel for two days ($100 per day one room). It will cost about Rs100,000 to get just one passport renewed. Other costs like meals, taxi fare are in addition to the above mentioned expenses. So one can imagine how this new facility could facilitate Pakistanis abroad.

I am waiting to renew my older child’s passport which expired last September. If this facility is launched, it would not only save my time, energy and money, but will also be convenient. I request the interior minister to launch this facility as soon as possible for this will reduce the financial burden on overseas Pakistanis.

Naveed Akhtar
Adelaide, Australia

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2016