Pakistan’s reliance on labor migration as a cornerstone of economic stability is both longstanding and profound.
With over 11 million Pakistanis living and working abroad, mainly in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Southeast Asia, and Europe, these expatriates collectively remitted over USD 30.3 billion in FY2023–24—a 10.7% increase from the previous year. In January 2025 alone, the country received USD 3.0 billion, reflecting a 25% year-on-year surge.
Yet, despite their economic significance, Pakistani migrant workers face alarming vulnerabilities, including exploitative recruitment practices, lack of legal protections, and high rates of imprisonment abroad. The country’s migration framework is failing them, and the cost is increasingly being paid in human suffering.
Mass Migration, Exploitation, and the Illusion of Opportunity
The majority of Pakistani migrant workers fall into the category of low- or semi-skilled laborers, primarily employed in construction, agriculture, transport, and domestic work. According to the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment (BE&OE), a record 727,381 workers were deployed in 2024 alone.
These migrants are often first-time international travelers, unfamiliar with local laws, and vulnerable to deceit by unlicensed recruitment agents and sub-agents. The unregulated market of “Azad visas” and illegal intermediaries continues to flourish in rural areas, pushing many into debt bondage even before they reach their destination.
Despite official channels, many migrants bypass mandatory pre-departure briefings, further compounding their risk of exploitation and abuse.
Prison Without Justice: The Rising Toll of Overseas Incarceration
A staggering 23,456 Pakistanis are currently imprisoned abroad, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The majority are held in Saudi Arabia (12,456) and the UAE (5,292), while others are detained in India, Greece, Oman, Malaysia, Bahrain, Qatar, Turkey, and the UK.
Among them, 68 Pakistanis are on death row in ten countries, and over 130 have been executed in Saudi Arabia alone since 2016—including 21 in 2024 and 11 in 2025. Most of these prisoners are charged with immigration violations, petty theft, financial fraud, or drug-related offenses.
Alarmingly, many detainees face prolonged detention without trial, inadequate legal assistance, coerced confessions, lack of translation services, and are denied access to consular support or contact with their families.
Gendered Exploitation and Systemic Abuse
While male workers dominate overseas migration flows, female migrant workers—especially in domestic roles—are subjected to heightened risks of abuse. Cases of sexual violence, wage denial, and physical assault are widespread.
These women have limited access to justice due to isolation within employers’ homes, absence of legal knowledge, and language barriers. Although some Gulf countries have initiated labor reforms, enforcement remains inconsistent, leaving many women trapped in abusive employment under restrictive systems such as kafala, which legally binds workers to their employers.
Consular Protection: A Policy Void with Deadly Consequences
Despite repeated judicial and parliamentary calls, Pakistan has yet to adopt a formal Consular Protection Policy. In 2010, the Supreme Court directed MOFA to streamline consular mechanisms for imprisoned citizens, while in 2017, the Lahore High Court emphasized the inadequacy of existing guidelines.
Most recently, in February 2024, the Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights instructed MOFA to finalize a protection policy within 90 days. Yet, implementation remains uncertain. Consular officers are required to visit detainees monthly, maintain detailed records, and notify families—but many missions fall short of these obligations due to inadequate staffing, lack of training, and poor coordination.
In some high-incarceration countries, a single Community Welfare Attaché (CWA) is tasked with handling thousands of cases.
Dormant Prisoner Transfer Agreements and Lack of Transparency
Pakistan has signed 11 Prisoner Transfer Agreements (PTAs) with countries including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, UK, and Sri Lanka, but few are operational. These agreements are not publicly accessible, depriving families of critical information regarding the repatriation of their loved ones.
While 7,200 Pakistani prisoners were returned from Saudi Arabia between 2019 and 2024 under a bilateral understanding, the process remains arbitrary and inaccessible.
A rare instance of success was seen in October 2024, when 56 prisoners were repatriated from Sri Lanka. This highlights that operationalizing PTAs is possible when there is political will and coordination.
Death Row and Denial of Due Process
Pakistanis facing the death penalty abroad are often denied even the most basic elements of due process. Many are victims of human trafficking, coerced into smuggling narcotics, yet are treated as criminals instead of survivors.
The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, to which Pakistan is a party, obliges states to notify foreign nationals of their right to consular access—yet this is routinely violated. Families are often unaware of impending executions, and diplomatic interventions come too late.
Notably, many of the offenses for which Pakistanis are executed abroad—such as drug smuggling—no longer carry the death penalty under Pakistani law since July 2023.
Comparative Models: Lessons from Regional Peers
Other countries in the region have developed effective protection frameworks for their citizens abroad. Malaysia mandates consular visits within 24 hours of an arrest and provides comprehensive online legal guidance.
Indonesia has aligned domestic law with international obligations, producing a detailed Consular Protection Handbook in 2016.
Bangladesh successfully reduced its overseas prisoner population by 25% between 2017 and 2024 through improved legal aid, prison visits, and proactive diplomacy. These models demonstrate that structured, rights-based approaches are achievable.
Gaps in Governance and Institutional Mandates
The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (MOPHRD) oversees labor migration and consular support, alongside the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment (BE&OE) and the Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF).
Despite a robust mandate, the ministry suffers from chronic underfunding, weak regulatory enforcement, and poor coordination with other ministries and provincial authorities. Pre-departure orientation sessions remain underutilized, and CWAs lack capacity to provide timely assistance.
Moreover, the Cabinet Committee on Emigration, reconstituted in 2024, offers an untapped opportunity for policy coordination that remains under-leveraged.
Shifting Labor Market Trends and the Threat of Brain Drain
Pakistan’s labor migration is evolving, both in destination and skill profile.
While low-skilled migration to the Gulf is declining due to labor nationalization policies like Saudization and Emiratization, new opportunities are emerging in countries such as Romania, Greece, Japan, and South Korea—which demand vocational training, language skills, and formal employment arrangements.
Simultaneously, highly skilled professionals are increasingly migrating to Western countries, contributing to a worsening brain drain. This trend reflects both the limitations of Pakistan’s domestic economy and the absence of an inclusive, skill-oriented migration policy.
International Obligations and Treaty Gaps
Pakistan has ratified several core human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Convention Against Torture (CAT), and CEDAW.
However, it has not ratified the 1990 International Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families, leaving a gaping hole in the country’s international legal framework.
UN treaty bodies and UPR reports have repeatedly criticized Pakistan’s inadequate protection of migrant workers, including poor prison diplomacy, inhumane detention conditions, and lack of legal assistance abroad.
Policy Recommendations: From Crisis to Reform
To safeguard the dignity, rights, and lives of Pakistani citizens abroad, the following urgent steps must be taken:
- Enact a Consular Protection Act to define institutional roles, ensure legal aid, and establish mandatory consular visits and reporting systems.
- Operationalize and Publicize Prisoner Transfer Agreements, beginning with Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and allow families access to repatriation procedures.
- Strengthen the capacity of Community Welfare Attachés through advanced training, adequate staffing, and improved coordination with consular missions.
- Crack down on unauthorized recruitment agents and abolish unregulated “Azad visa” trading through robust oversight and law enforcement.
- Expand pre-departure orientation programs, especially in rural areas, and ensure migrant workers are informed of their legal rights and host country laws.
- Ratify the UN Convention on Migrant Workers, signaling Pakistan’s commitment to international labor protections.
- Establish a Legal Aid and Emergency Assistance Fund to support Pakistani prisoners and their families.
- Create a National Working Group on Migrant Protection, involving MOPHRD, MOFA, NCHR, and civil society organizations for continuous oversight.
The Moral Imperative of Protection
Pakistan’s economic dependence on migrant workers must be matched by a moral and legal commitment to their protection.
From rural Punjab to a detention cell in Riyadh, every Pakistani has the right to dignity, justice, and due process. It is time for Pakistan to move beyond rhetoric, draft laws into action, and transform remittances into reciprocal protection.
Failing to protect those who fuel the nation’s economy not only undermines our global credibility but devalues the very lives we depend on. It is not enough to count remittances—we must also count rights, and lives.
Huma Kashif
Huma Kashif is a Research and Advocacy Officer at the Parliamentarians Commission for Human Rights and Visiting Faculty at the International Islamic University, Islamabad. She holds an M.Phil in International Relations from Quaid-i-Azam University. Her work focuses on human rights, arms control and disarmament, climate change, and conflict resolution. She can be reached at LinkedIn or humakashif1000@gmail.com
