Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have agreed to waive visa requirements for holders of diplomatic and official or special passports, in a move aimed at facilitating high-level engagement and institutional exchanges between the two countries.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan signed the agreement in New York on Tuesday on the sidelines of the 2026 United Nations General Assembly session.
Under the agreement, Pakistani citizens holding diplomatic and official passports will be able to travel to Saudi Arabia without obtaining a visa, according to Dar.
The deputy prime minister announced the development in a post on X, saying he was pleased to sign the agreement with his Saudi counterpart.
Dar described the arrangement as an important step toward facilitating high-level engagement and institutional exchanges between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
He said the agreement would also help advance the two countries’ “enduring and brotherly strategic partnership” across areas of mutual interest.
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia deepen economic ties
The visa waiver comes as Islamabad and Riyadh continue efforts to strengthen their economic, political and strategic relationship.
Last month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan wanted to transform its economic relationship with Saudi Arabia into a mutually beneficial strategic economic partnership.
Defence minister says time has come to implement Makkah pact amid Houthi attacks
The remarks came during his meeting with a high-level Saudi business delegation led by Prince Mansour bin Mohammad Al Saud, chairman of the Saudi-Pak Joint Business Council.
The Saudi delegation expressed interest in investment opportunities in several sectors, including agriculture, ports, highways, airport outsourcing, real estate, energy, power distribution and information technology.
Security and defence cooperation expands
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have also strengthened their security and defence cooperation in recent months.
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye signed the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement in August, establishing a framework for collective security cooperation among the three countries.
The Strategic Political and Defence Committee created under the agreement held its inaugural meeting in Istanbul on August 31, with the three countries agreeing to institutionalise cooperation under the pact.
The latest visa arrangement is expected to simplify official travel and facilitate greater interaction between government institutions in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, further supporting cooperation between the two countries.
