Curated by Vinod Kumar Jain & Amit Jain · All Frontier Global · free, no login · reviewed 2026-07-05
Mughal splendour and the world's highest mountains
Working abroad from Pakistan → — 40 checked official links: emigration clearance, the official register of licensed recruitment agencies, welfare and insurance schemes, missions and labour attaches abroad, and coming home.
Official figures, each with its source and the date it was read — the key-facts panel above is rounded and undated.
Population 255,219,554 (2025), up from 251,269,164 (2024) — Rise of about 3,950,390 (roughly 1.57%) over the one year the API's mrv=2 call returned.
GNI per capita, Atlas method (current US$) US$1,500 in 2025, up from US$1,430 in 2024 — Up US$70, about 4.90%, year over year.
GDP (current US$) approximately US$407.31 billion in 2025, up from US$371.75 billion in 2024 — Up about US$35.56 billion, roughly 9.57%, year over year (nominal current-US$ terms).
World Bank income classification: Lower middle income (lending category: Blend) — Capital city per the same record: Islamabad. Pakistan's own 2025 GNI per capita (US$1,500, above) sits inside this band. The record's regional-grouping label was not carried into this payload — its wording looked non-standard against the field's usual value and could not be independently double-checked within this session's fetch budget.
Currency: Pakistani Rupee (PKR); State Bank of Pakistan's own site quoted a mark-to-market revaluation rate of 277.5604 and a weighted-average interbank rate of 277.2821 (bid) / 277.7072 (offer) per US dollar, as on 21 August 2026 — Rate carries SBP's own 'as on 21-Aug-2026' date stamp; this session's fetch was on 24 August 2026. A dedicated exchange-rate history page and an external-trade section were both checked for on this homepage this session — no trade/export data was found (see deferred[]).
Sourced notes — every figure above, with where it was read and when.
Trade agreements (6): Pakistan has FTAs with China and Sri Lanka and is a SAARC/SAFTA member, but India-Pakistan trade remains largely suspended and there is no functioning bilateral trade route as of 2026.
Passport strength: visa-free/VOA to ~35 destinations. Limited visa-free travel; requires visas for most countries.
India × Pakistan hub ↗ All countries factsheet
Working abroad from Pakistan → — 40 checked official links: emigration clearance, the official register of licensed recruitment agencies, welfare and insurance schemes, missions and labour attaches abroad, and coming home.
Indian passport holders face a restrictive, category-specific visa regime (often visitor or religious visas with city-specific and police-reporting conditions) rather than open tourism, best arranged well in advance. Many other nationalities can use Pakistan's online e-visa system.
e-Visa: yes · Visa on arrival: Varies by nationality
Lahore and Karachi have modern BRT systems (Metrobus and the Orange Line train in Lahore), while ride apps Careem and inDrive are widespread; Daewoo Express runs comfortable intercity coaches, and Pakistan Railways links major cities.
Car vs taxi: Within cities, the Careem and inDrive apps are the easiest way to get around; for intercity travel, comfortable Daewoo Express coaches beat self-driving on unfamiliar roads.
Money: The Pakistani rupee (PKR) is the currency; cash dominates, especially in bazaars, though cards work at hotels and larger stores in cities.
SIM & data: Buy a Jazz, Zong, Telenor or Ufone SIM with your passport; biometric verification is required at official points of sale, and data is cheap.
Tipping: Tipping (called baksheesh) is common; leave around 10 percent at restaurants if service is not included, and small notes for porters, drivers and attendants.
Etiquette: Dress modestly (especially women, who should cover shoulders and legs), use the right hand for eating and giving, and respect prayer times and Ramadan fasting customs.
Food: Sample biryani, nihari, karahi, chapli kebab, haleem and seekh kebabs, with naan from tandoors and sweet lassi or Kashmiri chai.
Say hello: Urdu — “As-salamu alaykum” · thanks “Shukriya” · how much? “Kitne ka hai?”
Security varies by region; major cities and northern tourist areas like Hunza are generally calm, but check advisories and avoid border zones and areas flagged as sensitive.
For nomads: Lahore and Karachi have emerging startup ecosystems and coworking culture; affordable but safety considerations.
Education: Very affordable education; international schools concentrated in Karachi and Islamabad.
Healthcare: Private healthcare widely accessible and very cost-effective.
Pakistan Bureau of Statistics' own homepage headlines a 'Monthly Consumer Price Index' figure of 1.2% for July 2026
Neighbour comparison: DEFERRED — no named-neighbour official CPI/cost figure was fetched this session; the ten-fetch budget was allocated to Pakistan's own core u1/u2/u3 figures first. See deferred[].
Not covered here: No officially published Pakistani rent/meal/transit series was fetched this session. PBS's price-statistics page points to CPI sub-indices and an external dashboard (dssi.data.gov.pk) rather than a direct rent/meal/transit release; not pursued further within budget. Existing qualitative cost content on the live page, if any, is left untouched.
Sourced notes — every figure above, with where it was read and when.
Places Badshahi Mosque (Mosque) · Lahore Fort (Historic fort) · Walled City & Wazir Khan Mosque (Historic quarter)
Places Faisal Mosque (Mosque) · Margalla Hills & Daman-e-Koh (Viewpoint) · Pakistan Monument (National monument)
Places Karimabad & Baltit Fort (Historic fort) · Attabad Lake (Lake) · Passu Cones & Glaciers (Mountain)
Places Mingora Bazaar (Market) · Malam Jabba Ski Resort (Winter Resort) · Kalam Valley (Valley)
Places Bala Hisar Fort (Historic Site) · Peshawar Museum (Museum) · Qissa Khwani Bazaar (Market)
Places Karakoram Highway (Viewpoint) · Gilgit Fort (Historic Site) · Hunza Valley (Baltit Fort) (Historic Site)
City notes from Amit's own travels — the interactive travelogue holds the full record
mfn-withdrawal-200-tariff
India revoked Pakistan's Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) status February 16 2019 (post-Pulwama attack February 14 2019) + imposed 200% retaliatory-tariff framework on all Pakistani imports + Wagah-Attari border-trade suspended + Karachi-Mumbai shipping reduced to negligible volumes. Pakistan reciprocally suspended bilateral trade August 2019 (post-Article-370 framework). SAARC dormant since 2014 Kathmandu Summit framework cycles. Cross-border-terrorism context cycles affect cooperation framework dynamics.
India implication: Indian-Pakistan bilateral commercial cooperation collapsed February 2019 onwards + alternative-sourcing portfolio (Cement: domestic + Bangladesh · Cotton: African + Latin-American · Dry-fruits: Iran + Afghanistan + Turkey) + Indo-Pacific framework adjacency.
Outlook: Pakistan MFN-withdrawal + bilateral framework collapse persists structurally through 2030; commercial cooperation negligible.
Pakistan SAARC founding-member (Dhaka Summit 1985 alongside India + Bangladesh + Bhutan + Maldives + Nepal + Sri Lanka · Afghanistan 2007) + SAFTA in-force 2006 framework + 2014 Kathmandu Summit (last successful SAARC-Summit · India-Pakistan tensions postponed 2016 Islamabad Summit · SAARC dormant since 2016 cycles) + Pakistan MFN-withdrawal Feb 2019 + 200% retaliatory-tariff framework cycles.
India: India deepens SAARC-bypass framework via BBIN + BIMSTEC alternative-cooperation pathways + India-Sri Lanka ETCA + India-Bangladesh + Bhutan + Nepal bilateral framework cooperation.
India’s role: Indian-Pakistan bilateral cooperation collapsed February 2019 onwards · alternative-sourcing portfolio framework (Cement: domestic + Bangladesh · Cotton: African + Latin-American · Dry-fruits: Iran + Afghanistan + Turkey).
Pakistan-India bilateral framework historic (cement-import + cotton + textile + dry-fruits + Wagah-Attari border) collapsed post-Pulwama February 2019 + MFN status withdrawn + 200% retaliatory-tariff framework + Wagah-Attari trade-suspension + Most-Favoured-Nation framework cycles.
Pakistan's most recent Article IV consultation with the International Monetary Fund concluded at the Fund's Executive Board on 25 September 2024, per the IMF's own Pakistan country page — the periodic economic health check the Fund conducts of member states. The same page links through to Pakistan's 'Financial Position in the Fund' and 'Transactions with the Fund' records, which would carry the specific lending-arrangement name, approved amount and disbursement schedule, but those linked pages were not fetched within this session's ten-fetch budget.
India implication: DEFERRED — no India-specific implication of Pakistan's IMF engagement was sourced this session.
Outlook: DEFERRED — the specific programme name, quantum, and remaining review schedule that would inform an outlook were not captured this session; see deferred[].
Sourced notes — every figure above, with where it was read and when.
Indian passport holders face a restrictive, category-specific visa regime (often visitor or religious visas with city-specific and police-reporting conditions) rather than open tourism, best arranged well in advance. Many other nationalities can use Pakistan's online e-visa system.
Pakistan uses the Pakistani rupee (PKR). Capital: Islamabad.
Pakistan has FTAs with China and Sri Lanka and is a SAARC/SAFTA member, but India-Pakistan trade remains largely suspended and there is no functioning bilateral trade route as of 2026.
Security varies by region; major cities and northern tourist areas like Hunza are generally calm, but check advisories and avoid border zones and areas flagged as sensitive.
Pakistan's population reached 255,219,554 in 2025, up from 251,269,164 in 2024 (about 1.57% growth), with GDP (current US$) at approximately US$407.31 billion in 2025, up from US$371.75 billion in 2024, according to the World Bank.
The World Bank classifies Pakistan as a lower-middle-income economy, with a 'Blend' lending category. GNI per capita (Atlas method) was US$1,500 in 2025, up from US$1,430 in 2024.
Pakistan's currency is the Pakistani rupee (PKR). The State Bank of Pakistan's own website quoted a mark-to-market revaluation rate of 277.5604 and a weighted-average interbank rate of roughly 277.28 (bid) to 277.71 (offer) per US dollar, as on 21 August 2026.
The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics' own homepage headlines a Monthly Consumer Price Index figure of 1.2% for July 2026. This session's fetches could not establish whether PBS presents that figure as a month-on-month or a year-on-year change — the fuller Monthly Review document that would confirm this was not fetched.
The IMF's own Pakistan country page states that Pakistan's most recent Article IV consultation concluded at the Fund's Executive Board on 25 September 2024. The specific lending-arrangement name, amount and disbursement schedule sit on linked IMF pages that were not fetched this session.
This session could not reach an official Pakistani or Indian government page stating Indian nationals' visa requirement, instrument, fee or duration, or confirming Kartarpur Corridor or religious-pilgrim visa arrangements. Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs homepage carries no visa-policy page or mention of India, and its Consular Services page covers only document attestation, not visa issuance. This is deferred rather than answered from prior knowledge.
Because no official source for either was reached this session. Pakistan's Ministry of Commerce and TDAP were not fetched, and the State Bank of Pakistan's own homepage — the one central-bank domain fetched — carries no external-trade or India-trade section. This site ships only sourced figures, so both stay deferred rather than repeated from the page's existing unsourced text.
Sourced notes — every figure above, with where it was read and when.
Developed by Amit Jain at allfrontierglobal.com
Neighbouring profiles in the same UN M49 region.
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