Passport Renewal at NADRA Centres: What You Can Do
Renew online if under a year of validity is left, inland or overseas. A child over two must attend in person, and the fee is not refundable.
You can renew a Pakistani passport online, and passport processing now runs round the clock at NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore and Karachi. What you cannot do away from a passport office is get a first passport, and for a child over two the rules are stricter still.
Those limits are the part that sends people to the wrong counter, so they are worth knowing before you travel across a city.
We read the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports site at dgip.gov.pk on 7 September 2026, including its online passport pages and its announcements.
What can be done where
| Task | Route |
|---|---|
| Renewal, passport expired or under a year left | Online, inland or overseas |
| Passport processing round the clock | NADRA Mega Centers, Lahore and Karachi |
| First passport | Passport office |
| Child over two years, from abroad | Foreign mission in person |
| Third loss of a passport | Foreign mission in person |
| Overseas complaint | Email to the Interior Ministry address |
The distinction that matters is between renewing something you already hold and getting something new.
Who can renew online
The online renewal facility is open to both inland and overseas Pakistanis, which is the point most people miss. It is not an overseas only service.
You can start a renewal if your passport has already expired, or if its remaining validity is less than one year. A passport with eighteen months left is not eligible, so there is a window rather than an open door.
The application is a wizard. You enter demographic data, provide biometric information, upload the supporting documents, and pay by credit or debit card at the final step. The Directorate then reviews the application at headquarters and sends status updates to your registered email.
An approved passport is dispatched to the address you give, so the renewal can be completed without standing in a queue at either end.
The exclusions, and they are firm
Two exclusions are stated plainly and both catch people out.
A minor over two years of age must visit the foreign mission in person. So a family renewing together from abroad cannot simply add the children to an online application, and the child's appointment has to be planned separately.
A third loss of a passport also requires a visit to the concerned foreign mission. Losing a passport twice is handled differently from losing it a third time, and the third time removes the remote option.
Our guide to getting a passport for a child covers the documents a minor's application needs, and our guide to the types of Pakistani passport covers which booklet you are actually renewing.
The fee is not refundable
The site states that the online passport fee, once paid, is not refundable and not transferable from one person to another.
Read that as a warning about the order of operations. Check that you are eligible, that your documents are correct and that the category you have selected is the one you want, before you reach the payment step. A wrong selection paid for is a wrong selection you have bought.
It also warns that applicants must provide correct and valid information, with legal consequences under the passport law for those who do not.
Our guide to official passport fees sets out the rates by category and validity, and it is worth reading before you start rather than after.
Round the clock processing at NADRA centres
The Directorate's announcements state that a 24/7 passport processing facility is available at NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore and Karachi, with shift timings published on its own notice.
Its news items also record the establishment of passport processing centres at three NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore, and separate inaugurations of round the clock centres at the NADRA Mega Center on PECO Road in Lahore and at North Nazimabad in Karachi.
So the direction of travel is settled. Passport work is moving into NADRA premises, and the hours at those specific centres are longer than a passport office keeps.
What that does not do is turn a NADRA centre into a passport office for every purpose. A first passport still goes through the passport office route.
The nationwide expansion, and why we are calling it reported
News coverage on 6 and 7 September 2026 described e-passport renewal and reprint services becoming available at NADRA centres across the country from 7 September, with new e-passports and new machine readable passports staying with passport offices, and with passport delivery counters opening on Saturdays from 8am to 4pm for two months.
We looked for that on the Directorate's own pages on 7 September 2026, including its news feed, and did not find it. The most recent dated item on the news feed was from January 2026.
So we are describing it as reported rather than stating it as fact. The pattern it describes is consistent with what the Directorate has already published about NADRA Mega Centers, which is why it is plausible, but plausible is not verified.
Before travelling to a NADRA centre for passport work, ring ahead or check the Directorate's site for a notice covering your city.
If something goes wrong
- Track the application first, because most worry is about a passport that is simply still in process.
- Check the email address you registered, since status updates go there.
- For an overseas complaint, the Directorate publishes an Interior Ministry email address for passport related complaints.
- Collect a ready passport promptly, because an uncollected passport does not sit indefinitely.
- Keep the payment receipt, since the fee is neither refundable nor transferable.
Our guide to tracking a passport application covers the first step, and our guide to what happens to an uncollected passport covers the last one.
Common questions
Can I renew a Pakistani passport online from inside Pakistan?
Yes. The Directorate states the facility is available to both inland and overseas Pakistanis.
When am I eligible to renew?
If the passport has expired, or if its remaining validity is less than one year.
Can I renew a child's passport online?
A minor over two years of age must visit the foreign mission in person, so the online route is not open for them.
Is the online fee refundable?
No. The site states the fee once paid is not refundable and not transferable.
Can I get a first passport at a NADRA centre?
A new passport goes through the passport office. The NADRA facilities announced by the Directorate cover processing rather than first issuance.
Are NADRA centres open all night for passports?
The Directorate announces a 24/7 passport processing facility at NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore and Karachi, with shift timings on its own notice.
Last checked and sources
Last checked 7 September 2026. We read the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports site at dgip.gov.pk on that date. The online renewal facility being accessible to both inland and overseas Pakistanis, eligibility where the passport has expired or its validity is less than one year, the wizard style application collecting demographic data, biometric information and supporting documents with payment by credit or debit card at the final step, review at headquarters with status updates to the registered email, dispatch of approved passports to the applicant's address, the requirement that a minor over two years of age visit the foreign mission in person, the requirement to visit the concerned foreign mission on a third loss of a passport, the statement that the online passport fee once paid is not refundable or transferable from one person to another, and the warning about providing correct and valid information, are all taken from the Directorate's online passport pages. The announcement that a 24/7 passport processing facility is available at NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore and Karachi with shift timings on its notice, the publication of an Interior Ministry email address for passport related complaints by overseas Pakistanis, and the news items recording the establishment of passport processing centres at three NADRA Mega Centers in Lahore and the inauguration of round the clock centres at PECO Road Lahore and North Nazimabad Karachi, are taken from the announcements and news listing on the same site. The reported nationwide availability of e-passport renewal and reprint at NADRA centres from 7 September 2026, the retention of new e-passports and new machine readable passports at passport offices, and Saturday delivery counters from 8am to 4pm for two months, come from news coverage of 6 and 7 September 2026. We checked the Directorate's news feed on 7 September 2026 and the most recent dated item we could reach was from January 2026, so we have not confirmed the nationwide expansion on a government page and have marked it as reported. Confirm current arrangements for your city with the Directorate before travelling. Nothing here is legal advice.
About the author
Author
Shahid joined us in 2024 as an author. He is a senior contributor to Pakistan's leading technology websites. He writes detailed articles, mostly covering his expertise in the latest tech, mobiles, apps, gadgets, and step-by-step guides. His ideology is to help people understand the latest trends and explain complex methods through very easy-to-understand guides.
