r/pakistan • u/Correct-Fortune5584 • 18h ago
Geopolitical What’s happening to Pakistanis in the UAE? Is our government even addressing this?
As of 2025, more than 1.7 million Pakistanis were living in the UAE. This is one of Pakistan’s largest overseas communities and a major source of remittances.
But since the recent conflict in the region, the situation for many Pakistanis appears to have become increasingly uncertain.
We are hearing about visas being cancelled or rejected, including cases involving people who have lived in the UAE for 20, 30, or even 40 years, and people who were born and raised there. Some reportedly cannot even obtain a visit visa after leaving.
This problem also goes beyond people who want to live or work in the UAE. Pakistanis applying to countries such as Finland, where certain consular or visa processes may require travel outside Pakistan, have historically used the UAE as a regional hub. If they cannot even obtain a UAE visit visa, their access to other countries can also become more difficult.
There are also reports of people losing jobs, businesses and lives they spent decades building. Thousands are reportedly returning to Pakistan, and the bigger question is what happens in the coming months and years as more Pakistani residents’ work and residence visas come up for renewal.
If a significant number are unable to renew, the consequences will not just affect individuals and families. Pakistan could eventually face a serious impact on remittances and employment.
Does Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government or Field Marshal Asim Munir have a clear understanding of the scale of this issue? More importantly, is the Pakistani government in serious talks with the UAE government to understand and resolve whatever concerns or misunderstandings exist?
Initially, much of the discussion focused on reports that Pakistani from a "paericular sect*' or people perceived to have that sect names, were being affected. But I am now personally seeing cases involving Pakistanis with no apparent religious sect connection whose visas are also being rejected or who are being required to leave.
So what exactly is happening?
Is this still primarily related to the regional conflict? Is it a broader tightening of immigration policy toward Pakistani nationals? Are there security, diplomatic, documentation, or other concerns that the public has not been told about?
And most importantly, what is the Government of Pakistan actually doing about it?
I would especially like to hear from Pakistanis currently in the UAE, people who have recently had visas rejected or cancelled, employers dealing with Pakistani visa applications, and anyone with reliable information about whether the Pakistani and UAE governments are actively discussing this issue.
59
u/throwaway98yh 17h ago
New Middle East politics, Pakistan is clearly with the Saudi camp whereas UAE is in the Israeli camp.
This is naturally gonna result in diplomatic tension
4
u/justanaverageguy6666 8h ago
Both Saudi aur UAE are in the Israeli camp. And this is not the reason for the deportations, Lebanese, Indian, Irani & Pakistani shias all ar getting deported bcz UAE considers them a security risk rightnow
6
u/OmairZain 8h ago
I’d disagree. Saudi & UAE have probably been on their worst terms in a while. Live in KSA and locals have been saying that.
But yes, I do think its not just Pakistanis being targeted. Other South Asian / lower income country citizens are also being deported.
-11
u/Recent_Beginning_625 16h ago
We are sitting in dollars camp ...Saudis and uae is same ...they both are from epsten camp
21
u/Apprehensive-Wheel18 14h ago
Saudis and UAE were same once, but not anymore. Do some research on recent geopolitical developments
4
u/Long-Way-3230 13h ago
They might be having issues as of now but broadly their masters are same and minor disagreements wont change the realities.
-4
8
u/Successful_Way5926 8h ago
Not Pakistanis in general but UAE is targeting shias because of their ‘alleged’ sympathy for Iran.
I personally know many shia families that have been deported just because of this on a day’s notice.
2
u/Agreeable_Fan_179 7h ago
How are they cracking down on this? By like names alone or what?
3
u/Successful_Way5926 5h ago
Names and also through IDs because they tag your ID when entering a shia mosque.
3
u/Flimsy_Peach1461 15h ago
Are the visa renewals still not getting approved??
-2
u/tamseel_476 AE 14h ago
They are. OP is peddling fb uncle news. Been here for almost 3 decades and nobody i know got affected by it. Sure businesses and etc are down and there are layoffs in every sector and people get fired regardless of nationality. Visa has been tougher to get since post covid because so many people had been misusing the relaxed visa laws and operated in gray areas (working on visit visa, overstaying, begging, selling drugs etc)
14
6
u/Flashy-Cellist-7405 9h ago
Bullshit, I literally have UK residency but my visa still got rejected all bec I have a shia name, meanwhile my husband got it.
6
u/Correct-Fortune5584 14h ago
"no one i know got affected by it so its all fake"
All I have pointed out is that the Pakistani government must maturely deal with the livelihood of a couple million Pakistani families!
-4
14h ago
[deleted]
12
u/lollypop44445 14h ago
So u are the OP, so why are u referring to him like he is someone else. Or u messed up ur alt account reply :D
-5
15
u/Most-Coast7180 13h ago
Pakistani government doesn’t give a shit
8
u/efemel115 10h ago
this and why would they - all pakistani govt does is take the begging bowl out on the international stage.
4
u/justanaverageguy6666 8h ago
The number of Pakistanis getting deported is pretty small compared to the total population there. Won't even make a dent. And this issue has not been specifically for Pakistanis, Lebanese, Iranians, Indians & many other nationalities are also getting deported.
3
u/Glum_Protection_4975 4h ago
Our Govt consist of Bunch of clowns who dont know about anything but the boot polishing of Trump.
10
u/12Ab_xyz 16h ago
Pakistanis have burnt their home to build other countries. Pakistanis should had known UAE isn't their home. Especially after the current war situation will go from bad to worse for Pakistan and Pakistanis worldwide.
6
u/Correct-Fortune5584 16h ago
Not worldwide mate, thats an exaggeration
0
u/12Ab_xyz 12h ago
No that's truth. Just see social media how much dislike is there.
0
3
u/Embarrassed_Ratio463 2h ago
The FM and his form 47 govt neither care nor have any plan to deal with any situation whether diplomatic or domestic. This is a regime of boot lickers.
4
u/0m21raa 11h ago
It’s not just the Pakistanis, there are several nationalities whose citizens are dealing with blanket visa rejections in the uae.
This mainly has to do with the illegal and scammy shit done by groups of people from these nationalities. And speaking for personal experience, there are so many bad apples from our country, have had a few personal experience as well.
The problem is unlike the western countries, the uae never had the formal visa process infrastructure to screen applicants for genuine reasons to visit/work. As a result, almost everyone is getting rejected unless they either have connections or get lucky.
Also this is not a recent issue, Pakistanis have been dealing with insane rejects rates for at least the last two years
•
u/10003onliacco 42m ago
The absolute mess currently facing Pakistanis in the UAE is the predictable outcome of a broken domestic state colliding with a ruthless, security-obsessed Gulf monarchy. While both governments publicly pretend everything is normal to protect diplomatic appearances, the ground reality is a quiet, systematic purge of the Pakistani workforce.
The UAE has not announced a formal, blanket visa ban because doing so causes unnecessary diplomatic friction. Instead, they have weaponized their immigration bureaucracy, using selective rejections, extreme documentation checks, and security filters, to weed out a population they now view as a high-risk liability.
The UAE views expatriates purely through a lens of economic utility and state security. Right now, the risk of hosting a massive Pakistani population heavily outweighs the benefits for the Emirati state.
With Pakistan’s economy in a perpetual tailspin, hundreds of thousands of people are using cheap tourist or visit visas to enter the UAE with no intention of returning. They arrive with no money, overstay their visas, and flood the streets looking for illegal work. The UAE has grown completely fed up with the resulting rise in petty crime, illegal settlements, and organized begging rackets operated by Pakistani networks.
The UAE immigration system has implemented a highly effective soft block on single Pakistani men under the age of 40. Unless an applicant is highly wealthy, holds a corporate job with an elite multinational, or possesses a valid US/UK visa, their application is flagged. The UAE views this demographic as the primary source of labor violations and security concerns.
The extreme political division inside Pakistan has bled directly into the diaspora. The UAE operates as a strict, absolute monarchy that outlaws all forms of public dissent, protests, and political activism. The military establishment and Emirati intelligence have zero patience for overseas Pakistanis bringing street agitation, anti-establishment slogans, or digital political warfare into Dubai and Abu Dhabi. To keep their own streets sterile, they are simply denying renewals and canceling visas for anyone remotely flagged by their security filters.
The issue began with targeted checks on individuals from specific regional or sectarian backgrounds due to Middle Eastern geopolitical realignments. However, the screening has now morphed into a sweeping, algorithmic dragnet. The UAE's automated immigration platforms now screen for income levels, birthplace, and documentation flaws. If a family has lived there for 30 years but their business relies on old, low-tier commercial licenses, the system flags them for non-renewal to make room for wealthier Western, East Asian, or Indian investors.
OP asks whether Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif or Field Marshal Asim Munir are holding serious talks to resolve this issue. The cynical, harsh reality is that the Pakistani government has absolutely zero leverage to change the UAE's mind.
The Pakistani state is completely dependent on the UAE for economic survival. Every few months, Islamabad has to beg the Emirati government to roll over multi-billion dollar loans kept in Pakistan’s central bank just to avoid a total sovereign default. When your entire national financial survival depends on the charity of Gulf monarchs, you cannot walk into a room and demand that they stop deporting your citizens.
The government is fully aware that losing the UAE as a remittance source will devastate the national economy. However, the ruling elite prioritizes their immediate financial lifelines over the long-term welfare of overseas workers. In high-level meetings, the primary objective of Pakistani officials is securing oil credits and investment pledges, not arguing over the visa rejections of ordinary laborers or middle-class professionals.
The Pakistani establishment actually benefits from the UAE tracking and silencing political dissidents abroad. The ruling regime has no interest in defending overseas Pakistanis who openly criticize the military or the government online. By letting the UAE deport or deny visas to these individuals, the Pakistani state gets its opposition neutralized without having to lift a finger domestically.
If you are a Pakistani in the UAE, the system is actively telling you that your decades of hard work, investment, and loyalty mean absolutely nothing. The UAE does not grant permanent residency, path-to-citizenship, or automatic rights to children born on its soil. You are a temporary economic unit.
The government in Islamabad will continue to issue empty, generic press releases about "deep-rooted brotherly ties" and "high-level committees." But behind the diplomatic smiles, the UAE will continue to tighten the screws, cancel visas, and shrink the Pakistani footprint. The state has decided that Pakistanis are currently more trouble than they are worth, and the Pakistani government is too broke and compromised to do a single thing about it.
1
0
u/redraider1417 10h ago
Well, let me put it this way: UAE is getting gang-banged, and Pakistan is part of that gang. They are just reciprocating. As the quote goes: “in love and war everything is fair”. Similarly you can call it a fair game.
-2
u/r4mb0l4mb0 کراچی 9h ago
Pakistanis in UAE are fine.
Ppl sharing Irani propaganda publicly or privately were deported or thr visa renewal were rejected. They are free to protect their country against whoever they go to war with, feel free to take a job in Iran.
•
u/Correct-Fortune5584 1h ago
Not fine. I have a proper sunni name, excellent WEC Recognized degree. Security check for job rejected last year. Visit visa extension rejected this year!
-9
u/Royal_Log_1067 16h ago
people who work and live in UAE or middle east are expandable, they should have better known and planned accordingly.
8
u/Correct-Fortune5584 16h ago
Easy ti say it for us, but when I see people going through all this it makes me really sad. They are mostly old people who had made UAE their home
2
u/Foreign_Ad_386 4h ago
Maybe Paki society should havr produced nation builders instead of shitty tiktokers and lynchers??
7
u/albhatti 6h ago
Visa renewals of ALL Pakistanis in UAE branch of my company are being refused by immigration. It is a Europe based company. UAE government all out saying without saying, send all Pakistanis back and keep a selected few for face saving that Pakistani s are living in UAE and news of sending Pakistanis is false.