Recover Unpaid Salary or Death Compensation From Abroad Through OPF, Free

If a Pakistani worker comes home or dies abroad with salary, gratuity or compensation still unpaid, the Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) will chase the employer through the Pakistani embassy, free of charge. The worker or the legal heirs file the papers at an OPF office. Membership is not needed. When the money is recovered, OPF pays it into the heirs' bank accounts.

We read OPF's dues and compensation page on 2 October 2026. It is the official route to recover unpaid dues from abroad, and its document list is long. Gathering the papers in the right order saves months.

OPF chases six kinds of unpaid dues through the embassy

OPF's dues section recovers end of service money for workers who returned or died abroad while working legally. That covers salary, gratuity, death compensation, blood money, business assets and insurance claims. Deaths from natural causes, murder and traffic accidents are all covered.

OPF does not collect the money itself. It sends the case to the Pakistani mission in that country. The mission takes it up with the employer, the courts or the insurer there. When the case matures, the mission sends a bank draft back.

The page covers workers who served abroad "under legal and lawful status". A worker who had no legal status there may not qualify, so ask OPF before filing.

Gather twelve papers before you go to OPF

OPF lists the passport, work contract, CNIC or NICOP, iqama, insurance card, death or disability certificate, embalming certificate, police or post-mortem report, embassy NOC, bank details, any court order, the heirs' names and proof of the unpaid dues.

• Copy of the passport showing legal status abroad.
• Copy of the foreign service agreement, the work contract.
• Copies of the CNIC, NICOP or POC.
• Copy of the iqama, the residence permit.
• Copy of the insurance card.
• Death or disability certificate, in those cases.
• Embalming certificate.
• Police report or post-mortem report, in a murder case.
• NOC issued by the Pakistani mission.
• Bank account details.
• Court order, if there is one.
• Names of the legal heirs, and papers showing the unpaid dues.

The last item is the one families find hardest. Payslips, a final settlement letter, bank statements showing salary stopped, or messages from the employer all help. Ask the worker's colleagues abroad to collect what they can before the employer's files close.

Heirs need a succession certificate, except for small Saudi claims

For a death, OPF needs a succession certificate from a civil court naming every legal heir, with ages, relationships and shares. For Saudi Arabia, a claim under 10,000 riyals needs only an undertaking or affidavit from the heirs instead.

Apply for the succession certificate early, because the court process takes time and nothing moves without it. If any heir is a child, OPF also needs a guardianship certificate from the civil court. The guardian then signs on the child's behalf.

Next, the heirs pick someone to follow the case abroad. OPF says they can sign a special power of attorney for a trusted person in that country, jointly or one by one. With nobody there, they can sign it for the Vice Consul (Welfare), the Community Welfare Attache (CWA) or another officer at the mission.

Saudi and UAE cases need Arabic copies and MOFA attestation

For Saudi Arabia and the UAE, OPF says papers must be in English and Arabic, attested by Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and, as the case needs, the Saudi embassy. Other countries need MOFA attestation too, at Islamabad or a camp office.

MOFA has camp offices in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta, so most families do not have to travel to Islamabad. OPF does not list a fee here. MOFA's own page says ordinary attestation is free apart from revenue stamps, and when an apostille or attestation is the right choice depends on the country.

Saudi insurance claims under GOSI, the Saudi social insurance body, work differently. OPF says GOSI deals with the heirs directly and does not take requests through OPF or the embassy. Heirs send the insurance claim by email to compensation_ri@gosi.gov.sa, the address OPF gives.

File the case and track it in five steps

Submit the application and papers at any OPF office. OPF's dues section sends the case to the mission abroad. When the employer or court pays, the draft comes to OPF, which checks the heirs and pays them by direct bank credit.

1. Collect the papers in the list above, with MOFA attestation and Arabic copies where needed.
2. Get the succession certificate, or the affidavit for a small Saudi claim.
3. Sign the special power of attorney for a trusted person abroad or the mission.
4. Submit at an OPF office, the head office in Islamabad or a regional office.
5. Track the case on 051-9048303 or 051-9048308, by visiting the office or through OPF's website.

At payment time, each heir shows a CNIC, NICOP or POC, with two witnesses who bring their own CNICs. A colour photo is fixed to the receipt. OPF pays out at its head office or its offices in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, Multan and Mirpur.

Blood money in Saudi Arabia goes through OPF's law firm

For diyat, the blood money paid after a killing or fatal accident, OPF uses a Saudi law firm on a no win, no fee basis. The firm keeps 4% of whatever it recovers. Heirs apply for diyat through OPF like any other claim.

Nobody needs to pay anyone in Pakistan to "speed up" a diyat case. OPF does not charge, and its law firm is paid only from the amount it recovers.

Separately from the dues claim, the family of an OPF member can apply for OPF's Rs 400,000 financial aid within one year of the death. If the body has not come home yet, start with bringing the body home to Pakistan.

Common questions

Does OPF charge a fee to recover dues?

No. OPF says it charges no fee or service charge for dues or death compensation. Only Saudi diyat cases carry the law firm's 4% share.

Do I need OPF membership to claim unpaid salary?

No. OPF's page says membership is not required for dues or death compensation.

Can heirs claim after the worker has died?

Yes. The legal heirs can file the claim, with a succession certificate naming them.

How is the money paid?

By direct credit to each heir's bank account, after OPF checks the heirs against the succession certificate or affidavit.

How do I track my dues case?

Call 051-9048303 or 051-9048308, visit the OPF office, or check through OPF's website.

How we verified this

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

Last checked on 2 October 2026. The scope, papers, succession rules, MOFA attestation, GOSI email, payment process, diyat terms and tracking numbers are from OPF's dues and compensation page. The free ordinary attestation rule is from MOFA's fee page as read on 23 August 2026. OPF does not publish how long a case takes, and we did not call any number.