Pakistan bars new Afghan medical students, directs enrolled students to return

The PMDC issued the directive in a letter dated September 1, reiterating instructions first issued on July 31, as Pakistan intensifies the repatriation and deportation of Afghan nationals, Arab News reported.

“Afghan nationals previously enrolled in medical or dental programmes in Pakistan are required to return to Afghanistan,” the PMDC said in the directive sent to medical and dental institutions across the country.

It instructed institutions to complete all necessary administrative formalities, including issuing required No Objection Certificates (NOCs) and facilitating the students’ departure.

The regulator said no new admission, placement, transfer, migration or “other facilitation” of Afghan nationals would be permitted during the current academic session until further orders.

The PMDC did not specify how many Afghan students are currently enrolled in medical and dental colleges in Pakistan, nor whether students nearing completion of their degrees would be exempted.

A PMDC official confirmed the authenticity of the September 1 letter to Arab News but declined to provide further details.

The report said the directive comes as Pakistan has stepped up the repatriation and deportation of Afghan nationals, while relations between Islamabad and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) have become increasingly strained.