Balochistan Domicile to Be Issued at NADRA Centres, Rs 200 Fee Waived

The Balochistan cabinet decided on 9 October 2026 that domicile and local certificates will be issued as e-certificates through NADRA centres. The Rs 200 fee the provincial government had proposed is waived. NADRA's own service charge will still apply, and NADRA has not yet said what it is or when counters will open.

For a family in Quetta, Turbat or Zhob, a domicile is the paper that unlocks a quota seat, a provincial job form or a scholarship. Getting one has meant trips to the Deputy Commissioner's office, stamps and waiting. The cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti, says moving the job to NADRA will cut paperwork and repeat visits. Below is what was decided, what is still missing, and what you should do if you need a Balochistan domicile this month.

The cabinet moved Balochistan domicile issuance to NADRA

On Friday 9 October 2026 the Balochistan cabinet approved issuing e-domicile and local certificates through NADRA. Adviser Shahid Rind, who briefed the media after the meeting, said citizens will be able to get both certificates directly from NADRA centres instead of going office to office.

Two documents are covered. A domicile certificate shows which district and province you belong to. A local certificate, often asked for in Balochistan job and admission forms, confirms you are a local resident of a district. Both have so far been signed at the district level.

The decision is a cabinet approval. We have not seen a notification from the Services and General Administration Department, and NADRA's website listed no Balochistan domicile service when we checked on 10 October 2026. So treat the change as approved, not yet running.

The Rs 200 government fee is gone, NADRA's charge stays

The provincial government had proposed a Rs 200 fee for the new e-certificate. The cabinet abolished it. That means Balochistan will not take a fee of its own, but NADRA's standard service charge still applies, according to the government briefing.

NADRA has not published that charge yet. Its fees for other provincial services it runs vary by service and by urgency, so do not assume the domicile will be free. Here is the position as of 10 October 2026:

Until NADRA starts, apply at your Deputy Commissioner's office

Nothing changes on the ground until NADRA opens the service. Under the Pakistan Citizenship Rules, a domicile certificate is issued by the district's Deputy Commissioner, so that is still where you apply today. If you have a deadline for a job or an admission, do not wait for the new system.

The usual route in the meantime looks like this:

1. Get the application form from the Deputy Commissioner's office of the district where you live.
2. Attach copies of your CNIC (or B-Form for a minor), your father's CNIC and his domicile if he has one.
3. Add proof of residence, such as a utility bill or a land or rent record, and recent photographs.
4. Have the form verified as the office requires, then submit it at the counter.
5. Collect the certificate on the date you are given, and check every spelling before you leave.

Requirements differ a little between districts, so ask at the counter before you photocopy everything. A domicile is issued for one district only, which matters for quota seats. If a land record is part of your proof, the steps to get a fard in Balochistan are the same as before.

What the move to NADRA should change for applicants

The government's stated aim is fewer office visits, less paperwork and shorter waits. NADRA already holds your family tree and address through the CNIC system, so much of the checking that a district office does by hand could be done from its records.

An e-certificate could also help employers and universities, because a digital record can be checked against NADRA's data instead of trusting a stamped paper. The government has not yet said how employers will verify one.

Some questions remain open. The government has not said whether existing paper domiciles stay valid, which they normally should, or whether people will need a NADRA token, a biometric check or an online form. We will update this when NADRA publishes the service.

Other decisions from the same cabinet meeting

The domicile change was one of more than twenty decisions on 9 October. The cabinet also approved the Non-Formal Education Act for 1.6 million out-of-school children, double-shift schools, compulsory e-bidding for tenders above Rs 500,000, and laws on telemedicine and public health.

If a district office refuses your domicile or delays it without reason, you can raise it with the Chief Minister through the AWAAZ complaint portal. People from other provinces follow different routes, because Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad each run their own domicile systems.

Common questions

Can I get a Balochistan domicile from NADRA today?

No. The cabinet approved it on 9 October 2026, but NADRA had not started the service or listed it on its website when we checked on 10 October. Apply at your Deputy Commissioner's office for now.

Is the Balochistan domicile now free?

Not fully. The provincial Rs 200 fee was abolished, but NADRA's standard service charge will still apply. NADRA has not announced that amount.

What is a local certificate in Balochistan?

It is a certificate confirming you are a local resident of a district. Balochistan job and admission forms often ask for it alongside the domicile. The cabinet decision covers both.

Will my old paper domicile still be valid?

The government has not said otherwise. A domicile already issued by a Deputy Commissioner should remain valid unless a new rule says so, and none has been announced.

When will NADRA start issuing Balochistan domiciles?

No date has been given. The service needs a notification from the provincial government and setup at NADRA centres, and neither had been published by 10 October 2026.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked on 10 October 2026. The cabinet decision, the abolished Rs 200 fee and the statement that NADRA's charges still apply come from the Balochistan government's post-cabinet briefing by Adviser Shahid Rind on 9 October 2026, as released by the state news agency. We checked the NADRA website on 10 October 2026 and found no Balochistan domicile service listed. We could not find a provincial notification. The role of the Deputy Commissioner comes from the Pakistan Citizenship Rules, 1952, on Pakistan Code.