Himalayan News Service

Islamabad, July 4:

Indians wanting to travel to Pakistan will have to apply for visas at least eight weeks in advance and no short notice requests will be entertained, new guidelines issued by Islamabad say. The new rules state that a visa request on the prescribed form of the interior ministry must be given to the relevant authorities at least eight weeks in advance and must be accompanied by photocopies of a valid passport, The Nation reported. According to an official release, the upswing in bilateral ties had led to a large number of requests for Pakistani visas but authorities were unable to process requests, as the applicants did not follow the laid down procedure. Cultural and sports delegations from India would have to contact the relevant ministry and visas will be processed only after they are received through the said ministry. It said due to the lack of knowledge of the procedures involved, most requests were received at very short notice and the ministry was unable to issue clearances in a short span of time.