UAE, Pakistan sign visa exemption agreement for some passport holders
The announcement was made following the 12th session of Pakistan-UAE Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
The UAE is home to one of the largest foreign workers, housing over 1.7 million Pakistanis. Official figures revealed earlier showed more than 64,000 Pakistanis securing jobs in the UAE last year.
Dar said JMC is 'an important step in further deepening strategic, economic, and development cooperation between our two brotherly countries. We reviewed progress in trade, investment, energy, infrastructure, and IT.'
'Three important MoUs were signed: Visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders; Cooperation in AI & the digital economy; and joint investment promotion, which will pave the way for enhanced engagement to the mutual benefit of both nations,' Dar said in a statement on social media platform X.
My Brother HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed @ABZayed and I signed an agreement on mutual visa exemption for the holders of diplomatic & official passports of our two countries, at the conclusion, very late last night, of a highly productive 12th session of the Pakistan-UAE Joint� pic.twitter.com/MQX671bhEk
— Ishaq Dar (@MIshaqDar50) June 25, 2025
The 12th session of JMC held in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday was co-chaired by Ishaq Dar and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of the UAE.
Prior to the formal proceedings, a working group meeting of the JMC was held under Tariq Bajwa, special assistant to the prime minister of Pakistan, and Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State of the UAE.
The JMC reviewed the full scope of bilateral relations and agreed on concrete measures to strengthen cooperation in trade, banking, culture, investment, aviation, railways, energy, food security, climate change, defence, healthcare, manpower, higher education and information technology.
Both sides emphasised enhancing institutional mechanisms and promoting inter-ministerial coordination.
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