During the last about three years, over 17 million Pakistanis went abroad illegally in search of employment.

According to documents available with Dawn, in 2009 as many as 4.3 million people left the country illegally. In 2010, the number reached 4.5 million touching the five million mark in 2011. Till August 31, 2012, about 3.4 million Pakistanis had migrated to other countries without legal documents.