MEMBERS of the Pakistani community abroad, particularly in Canada and the United States, face a lot of difficulties when they go for acquiring a driver’s licence. Unlike citizens of many other countries, Pakistanis do not get an automatic conversion of the licences issued in Pakistan as there are no driving licence equivalency agreements with Pakistan.

While residents from other nations are allowed to use their home country licences for an extended period, Pakistanis are required to obtain a local licence within 90 days of their arrival.

Unfortunately, this situation becomes even more complicated when Pakistani licence holders apply for a local driver’s licence. Canadian as well as American authorities often require proof of prior driving experience from the applicant’s home country. Those having more than three years of experience are typically exempt from the mandatory training period.

However, Pakistan-issued licences present a unique challenge. These licences are issued by provincial authorities, without clearly identifying the issuing country as Pakistan. This omission causes confusion among the officials, who som-

etimes question the legitimacy of the document, as it does not explicitly state that it is issued by the Pakistan government.

Moreover, when asked to verify the authenticity of these licences through the official website of the Punjab traffic police’s Driving Licence Management Information System (DLIMS), most of the applicants face further obstacles. The website is inaccessible from outside Pakistan, making it impossible for the authorities in Canada and the US to verify the licences online.

As such, this lack of coordination across Pakistani officialdom is creating unnecessary hardships for Pakistanis living abroad. The government and its diplomatic missions abroad need to address the issue.

Establishing licence equivalency agreements and ensuring that Pakistan-issued licences are properly recognised by foreign authorities will greatly assist overseas Pakistanis in navigating the bureaucratic hurdles they currently face.

Dr Muhammad Zaid
Lahore

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2024