Saudi Arabia deports 56,000 Pakistanis over begging: Why Islamabad’s reputation is suffering | Explained

A disabled Afghan beggar (Foreground-R) looks on as a Pakistani beggar (L) talks on a mobile phone in a market in Rawalpindi on November 19, 2008. (File image used for representation)

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have tightened scrutiny of Pakistani nationals, as organised begging and criminal activity linked to Pakistani citizens increasingly draw concern abroad and damage Pakistan’s international image.

Saudi Arabia alone has deported 56,000 Pakistanis over allegations of begging, according to Pakistani authorities. The UAE has also imposed visa restrictions on most Pakistani nationals, citing concerns that some visitors were “getting involved in criminal activities” after entering the country.

Data from Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency shows the depth of the problem. In 2025, FIA officials offloaded 66,154 passengers at airports in an effort to break organised begging rackets and prevent illegal migration before travellers could leave the country.

FIA Director General Riffat Mukhtar said these networks were causing serious reputational damage to Pakistan and were no longer confined to a single region.

Mukhtar said that Saudi Arabia deported 24,000 Pakistanis this year alone on allegations of begging, while Dubai sent back around 6,000 individuals. Azerbaijan deported roughly 2,500 Pakistani beggars, he added. Similar cases have also emerged involving travel to Africa and Europe, as well as the misuse of tourist visas to destinations such as Cambodia and Thailand.

The issue had already triggered strong warnings from Saudi authorities last year. In 2024, Riyadh formally urged Islamabad to stop Pakistani beggars from exploiting Umrah visas to travel to Mecca and Medina for alms. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Religious Affairs cautioned that failure to curb the practice could have consequences for Pakistani Umrah and Hajj pilgrims.

Legal experts in Pakistan have described the problem as systemic rather than accidental. Writing in Dawn last year, lawyer Rafia Zakaria said begging in Pakistan functions as a structured enterprise.

“One industry in Pakistan that seems to be very organised and has been quite successful in ensuring that its recruits have plenty to do is the begging industry. It is such a successful venture that it has now decided to start exporting to, and expanding in, other countries,” she wrote.

Zakaria added, “As many Pakistanis may have seen for themselves during Haj, these beggars set up shop outside the holy places in Makkah and Madinah, where they harass foreign pilgrims for money just as they do shoppers in markets across Pakistan.”

Government officials have echoed similar concerns. In 2024, Secretary of Overseas Pakistanis Zeeshan Khanzada said that around 90 percent of beggars detained in West Asian countries were Pakistani nationals.

Despite repeated deportations, stricter visa rules and warnings from host nations, organised begging networks linked to Pakistan continue to operate across borders. The result has been mounting diplomatic embarrassment, shrinking mobility for Pakistani citizens, and a steadily worsening perception of Pakistan abroad.