DRAFT — Senate Approves Blue Passports for Ex-Lawmakers with Incomplete Terms
- Suggested slug: senate-blue-passports-ex-lawmakers-bill
- Category: National News
- Focus keyphrase: blue passports for ex-lawmakers
- SEO title: Senate Approves Blue Passports for Ex-Lawmakers
- Meta description: The Senate passed a bill letting ex-lawmakers keep blue passports without a full term, but withdrew a move to extend it to their children.
- Tags: blue passport, Senate, Parliament, Abdul Qadir, Passports Act, official passport, Tallal Chaudhry, Azam Nazeer Tarar
- Original element: explainer context — what official blue passports are (visa-free entry to 55 countries) and the 75,000-to-45,000 cut after European reservations.
- Sources: https://www.dawn.com/news/2038312/senate-approves-bill-seeking-blue-passports-for-ex-lawmakers-with-incomplete-term (Dawn, 19 Oct 2026); https://propakistani.pk/?p=1102460 (ProPakistani, 19 Oct 2026)
- Story date: 19 October 2026
- Image file: hourly-0032-senate-blue-passports-ex-lawmakers-bill.webp
- Image title: Pakistan official blue passport Senate bill
- Image alt: A Pakistani official blue passport as the Senate approves blue passports for ex-lawmakers with incomplete terms
- Image caption: A Pakistani official (blue) passport. The Senate bill still needs the National Assembly’s approval. Image: ProPakistani
- Image credit: Image: ProPakistani
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Senate Approves Blue Passports for Ex-Lawmakers with Incomplete Terms
The Senate on Monday passed a bill that will allow former lawmakers to keep blue passports for ex-lawmakers even if they did not serve a full term in the National Assembly or the Senate.
The bill, moved by Senator Abdul Qadir, inserts a new Section 3-A in the Passports Act, 1974. It states that a retired parliamentarian who has taken the oath as an MNA or a senator, whether for a full term or for the remainder of another member’s term, shall be entitled to retain and use the gratis official (blue) passport issued to them after leaving office. The amendment also covers lawmakers who leave before completing five years as an MNA or six years as a senator.
At present, under the Passport Rules 2021, blue passports go only to ex-parliamentarians who served at least one full term. The bill’s statement of objects and reasons says the change brings parity with privileges available to other high-ranking officials. The bill has yet to be passed by the National Assembly.
Children’s bill withdrawn
In the same sitting, the House withdrew a second bill that would have extended the facility much further. That bill sought to amend the Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) Act, 1974, to give gratis official passports to an ex-member, the spouse, and dependent children below the age of 28. It was withdrawn after opposition from treasury members.
The children’s bill had already drawn fire. It was approved by the relevant Senate committee in July, prompting a backlash, after which Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry assured the House that the travel document would be used only for official duties abroad and issued for a limited time in most cases.
What a blue passport is worth
Official blue passports are issued to key constitutional, government and judicial office holders, senior bureaucrats and their eligible dependents. They allow visa-free entry to 55 countries, including 22 European countries, which is why the document is so jealously guarded.
Speaking in the Senate, Chaudhry said the number of official passports in circulation had been cut from 75,000 to 45,000 after European countries and Canada raised reservations. Around 30,000 unnecessary and inactive blue passports were cancelled. He said the government had no issue with parliamentarians themselves holding blue passports but opposed extending the facility to families, since a flood of such passports made other countries hesitate over visa-free access. He added that a bill would soon be moved to withdraw the facility for children of retired bureaucrats.
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar stressed that blue passports should be regulated because they are meant for official business. “Let children make their own careers; respect is not built through blue passports,” he said. He also called for ending the six-year service requirement for senators, noting that NA members become eligible after taking the oath while a senator who resigned months before completing the term could lose eligibility.
PML-N Senator Abid Sher Ali strongly criticised the interior ministry’s no-objection certificate requirement for issuing blue passports to parliamentarians, calling it a breach of privilege, and announced he would move a privilege motion.
KP emergency debated
The sitting also saw a sharp exchange over the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Allama Raja Nasir Abbas called the move an “assault on the people’s mandate”, while Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said it was imposed through a presidential order under Articles 233 and 234 of the Constitution and ratified by both Houses. The confrontation over governor’s rule continues to dominate Parliament, as seen in Tariq Fazal’s rejection of the minerals-link claim and the PPP’s insistence that dialogue should have come first.
Frequently asked questions
What did the Senate approve?
A bill inserting Section 3-A in the Passports Act, 1974, letting retired parliamentarians who took the oath keep their gratis official blue passports even without completing a full term.
Who qualifies under the new bill?
Any former MNA or senator who took the oath, whether they served a full term, the remainder of another member’s term, or left before five years (MNA) or six years (senator).
What happened to the children’s blue passport bill?
It was withdrawn in the same sitting after treasury members opposed extending gratis official passports to ex-members’ spouses and dependent children under 28.
What is an official blue passport?
It is the travel document issued to constitutional office holders, senior officials and eligible dependents, giving visa-free entry to 55 countries, including 22 in Europe.
