Islamabad, Nov 27 : The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has stopped issuing visas to Pakistani citizens, an Interior Ministry official in Islamabad was quoted as saying by local media on Thursday.

Additional Interior Secretary Salman Chaudhry disclosed the development during a meeting of the Senate Functional Committee on Human Rights.

"If a ban is imposed, getting it removed would be difficult," Pakistanâ??s leading newspaper 'Dawn' quoted Chaudhary as saying during the meeting.

According to the official, the UAE was currently issuing visas only to holders of blue and diplomatic passports.

Speaking to Dawn, Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri, chair of the Senate committee on human rights, also confirmed the Interior Ministry official's remarks.

She stated that the restriction stems from concerns that Pakistani travellers were "getting involved in criminal activities" after reaching the UAE.

According to Zehri, the committee was briefed that the UAE had issued no visas to Pakistanis, with only a handful granted recently "after much difficulty".

Pakistani citizens have been facing visa rejections in several Gulf countries, prompting the government to raise the issue with respective counterparts during key meetings.

In December 2024, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and several other Gulf countries imposed an indefinite ban on granting visas to people from at least 30 different cities of Pakistan, following an alarming rise in the number of cases where Pakistani nationals were caught begging or being involved in smuggling, drug trafficking, human trafficking and other criminal offences abroad.

Gulf countries and cities, especially Dubai and Abu Dhabi, remain the most preferred destinations for millions of Pakistani travellers and job seekers.

Earlier, the UAE had made it mandatory for visa applicants from Pakistan to submit a police character certificate.

A prominent Pakistani YouTuber had also acknowledged the difficulties being faced by travellers from the country after the Gulf countries stopped granting visas to Pakistani nationals.

"Saudi Arabia and Dubai were popular destinations, but have now stopped giving visas. I too had to face a great difficulty when I wanted to go for the IIFA Awards. In fact, Saudi Arabia has given a warning to Pakistan with regard to the increasing number of cases of beggars being caught," podcaster Nadir Ali admitted in an interview with a businessman who owns a large travel company in Karachi, last year.

/IANS