Senate Turns Down Bill Limiting Diplomatic Passports for Officials

The Senate rejected a private members' motion to amend the Passports Act, aiming to bar ministers of state and other senior officials from diplomatic passports.

NationPulse Desk

Oct 27, 2026 · 9:13 AM 2 min read

Key takeaways

The Senate rejected the Passports (Amendment) Bill 2026 on Monday.

The bill aimed to add Section 12A to the Passports Act 1974 restricting diplomatic passports.

It would have barred ministers of state, advisers, special assistants, most federal secretaries and director generals from receiving diplomatic passports.

Existing diplomatic passports would have to be surrendered within 30 days of the act's start.

Senator Faisal Saleem Rehman, Samina Mumtaz Zehri and Saifullah Abro introduced the bill.

The Senate on Monday voted against the Passports (Amendment) Bill 2026, a proposal that would have limited diplomatic passports to ministers of state, advisers, special assistants and senior bureaucrats.

Senator Faisal Saleem Rehman, who chairs the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, introduced the private members' bill together with Senators Samina Mumtaz Zehri and Saifullah Abro.

Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry opposed the measure, arguing it would diminish cabinet authority. Rehman maintained that diplomatic passports should be reserved for ministers and not be issued broadly. PPP Senator Zamir Ghumro added that a minister of state represents parliament.

The draft sought to amend the Passports Act 1974 by adding Section 12A, titled "Restriction on Diplomatic Passport Entitlement of Ministers of State, Advisers, Special Assistants, Federal Secretaries and Director Generals."

According to the proposed language, a diplomatic passport could not be issued, re-issued or renewed for a minister of state, an adviser or special assistant to the prime minister, a federal secretary other than the foreign secretary, or a director general solely because of the office held.

Any diplomatic passport already in possession would need to be returned to the designated authority within 30 days after the act begins.

The bill also clarified that those officials would still qualify for ordinary or official passports if eligible, and that other independent entitlements from different offices or diplomatic assignments would remain unaffected.

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