Sameday visa process for Saudi Arabia

If you’re a Pakistani national living in Kuwait, this news probably won’t change your own visa queue here. But it could matter for family back home, or for any trip you plan through Pakistan on the way to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Embassy in Islamabad has just made getting a Saudi visa much quicker for Pakistani citizens applying there.

The Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan, Dr Rajeh bin Tami Al-Baqami, announced on Friday that visa applications from Pakistani citizens will now be processed the same day. He said the move is meant to make travel easier and to strengthen business, cultural and people-to-people ties between the two countries. This comes during a period when Saudi Arabia has been tightening some residency and entry rules for other nationalities, as we covered in our piece on Saudi Arabia’s latest visa crackdown, so a speed-up for Pakistani applicants stands out.

So who does this actually affect?

This change applies to Pakistani citizens applying for a Saudi visa through the embassy in Islamabad, not to Pakistani residents already living and working in Kuwait or elsewhere in the Gulf. If you’re in Kuwait, your Saudi visa process still goes through the usual channel for Kuwait residents.

Where it could matter is for family members in Pakistan who want to visit you in Kuwait or Saudi Arabia, or for anyone travelling back to Pakistan and then onward to Saudi Arabia for work, Umrah or business. A same-day turnaround means less waiting around and fewer delayed travel plans for them.

It’s also a sign of warmer ties between Islamabad and Riyadh at a time when Gulf security has been in the news, including the Saudi airport disruptions we reported on in our coverage of the Riyadh airport shutdown. You can follow more regional developments like this on our International news hub.

What else came out of the meeting?

The visa announcement wasn’t the only thing discussed. Minister Malik and Ambassador Al-Baqami met mainly to talk about energy and investment cooperation between the two countries.

Malik said he had recently visited Riyadh and personally told Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud that Pakistan’s leadership feels strong solidarity with the Saudi people. He said Pakistan values its historic relationship with Saudi Arabia and wants to expand cooperation in strategic sectors.

The two sides discussed investment, trade and partnerships across several industries. Malik told the ambassador that Pakistan has approved a new tax-neutral bonded storage policy, modelled on international energy hubs like Fujairah and Singapore.

Under this policy, Saudi companies can set up commercial oil reserves inside Pakistan without paying local tax on them. Malik said this gives Saudi Arabia a way to spread out the risk of relying on narrow shipping routes like the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab Al Mandeb Strait, both of which have seen tension in recent months, including the drone incidents we reported near the Aramco oil field at Shaybah.

Malik added that storing oil in Pakistan would give Saudi Arabia more flexibility in managing its supply routes and reaching regional markets.

A new oil hub in Balochistan?

Malik also shared Pakistan’s plans to build a major oil storage and refining facility at Hub, in Balochistan province. The project is being developed with guidance from Technip Energies UK and is backed by Pakistan’s prime minister and the chief of defence forces.

According to Malik, the facility would be big enough to handle Very Large Crude Carriers, the largest class of oil tankers. He said this could turn Pakistan into a regional energy corridor serving markets in Central Asia and China.

Malik also pointed to Pakistan’s ongoing refinery upgrade programme, which aims to modernise the country’s refineries, make them more efficient, and move them towards Euro 5 fuel standards. He said this programme is open to Saudi investment and participation.

On top of that, Malik thanked Saudi authorities at Yanbu port for giving priority to crude oil shipments to Pakistan during recent disruptions in global markets. He also said Pakistan is in talks with Saudi Aramco to buy more crude oil cargoes and dedicated LPG shipments, especially with gas demand expected to rise in Pakistan this winter.

What this means for people in Kuwait

For the Pakistani community in Kuwait, the headline news here is really about family and travel convenience back in Pakistan, not a change to anything in Kuwait itself. If you have relatives planning a trip through Pakistan to Saudi Arabia, this should mean a shorter wait for their visa.

For everyone else, the bigger story is strategic. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are deepening ties in energy and defence at a time when shipping routes near the Gulf have faced security concerns, as we’ve reported in stories like the US warning over Houthi threats to Saudi airports. A stronger Pakistan-Saudi energy relationship could, over time, affect oil supply stability across the region, which matters to everyone living and working in Kuwait.

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