ISLAMABAD: All foreign media personnel will now require a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MOIB) to travel to any city outside Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi for news coverage, according to recently issued guidelines.

The new Foreign Media Facilitation Guidelines, 2026, outline requirements for the registration and accreditation of “foreign media houses, organisations and outlets working in Pakistan and all eligible journalists, media owners, media professionals, sources, freelancers, sponsors, fixers, attached persons, assignees etc, of Pakistan working or contributing for them”.

All foreign media personnel already accredited or registered with the MOIB’s External Publicity (EP) Wing will require a mandatory NOC from the wing for movement to any city except Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi, in order to produce “news content, story, video, film, documentary or social media content” for official use.

For leisure trips to Abbottabad and Murree, a NOC may be granted by the EP Wing upon the request of the journalist, within three working days, the notification added.

The guidelines apply to all foreign or international print, electronic and digital media, including social media and web-based platforms.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2026