ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Pakistan has decided to shut 16 Afghan refugee camps in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Balochistan, and Punjab as the refugees’ repatriation continues, local media reported.
Repatriation of Afghan refugees
The federal government had, last month, informed the provinces that the formal repatriation and deportation of over 1.3 million Afghan refugees holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards will begin on September 1.
Earlier on July 31, the interior ministry had announced that PoR cardholders — the last category of Afghans legally residing in Pakistan without visas — became unlawful residents after their cards expired on June 30.
The Ministry of States and Frontier Regions (Safron) issued a notification on September 25, 2025 that de-notified camps located in Haripur, Chitral and Upper Dir in KP, Chaghai, Loralai, Killa Saifullah, Pishin and Quetta in Balochistan, and Mianwali in Punjab.
Chief Minister Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Khan Gandapur stated on a number of occasions that his government will not force refugees to return.
The Safron ministry notifications said that all lands within the de-notified areas will be handed over to the provincial governments and deputy commissioners of the concerned districts.
Most of the Afghan refugee camps had been set up in early 1980s when they started coming to Pakistan after the invasion of the erstwhile Soviet Union.
Pakistan started repatriating Afghan refugees in 2023 over security concerns and amid tension with the Taliban government.
According to UNHCR, there were over 1.3 million Afghans in Pakistan as of June 30, 2025 while more than half of them (717,945) lived in KP, 326,584 in Balochistan, 195,188 in Punjab, 75,510 in Sindh and 43,154 in Islamabad.
