A little-known change in Emirati immigration procedures that took effect three days ago now requires Pakistanis to have the new, electronic-coded biometric passports. The problem was, holders of the older passports discovered this as they were about to board their flights. For many travelers ready to board their flights it came as a shocker.

“I had a ticket that was confirmed and reconfirmed just five days ago,” said popular Pakistani poet Naeem Bazidpuri, who learned about the new regulation at the Emirates Airline counter at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. “Nobody told me anything about the new regulations, nor did we hear about them in the news media,” he told Arab News.

What angered Bazidpuri even more was the fact that he had to wait for hours to get to the counter. “There is chaos at the airport, and it took me nearly three hours to reach the check-in counter only to be turned away. They have spoiled my Eid plans.”

Bazidpuri planned his trip months in advance. “Like last year, I decided to celebrate Eid with my two sons in Dubai,” he said. “Getting an on-arrival visa has never been a problem for professionals who have a valid Saudi iqama or work permit. It is issued at the airport itself for a fee of 200 dirhams.”

Bazidpuri was not alone. At Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport, Sagheer Ahmad and Munawwar Hussain, both Pakistani nationals and working in responsible positions at a Jubail-based company, were similarly turned away.

“At first, we thought we had been blacklisted. Then, the guys at the information counter told us the difference between the manual passport and electronic passport. We knew nothing about the new rules or whatever they are. We visited Dubai only three months ago, and there was no problem,” they told Arab News.

An Emirates Airline official at Jeddah airport told Arab News that the rules were specific to Pakistani nationals. “We received this directive from Dubai immigration authorities only three days ago that Pakistani nationals seeking on-arrival UAE visas who have manual passports should not be allowed to board. Those with biometric passports are being allowed and have no problem,” he said.

According to him, similar instructions were issued to other airlines. The airline official, himself a Pakistani national, sympathized with his compatriots who were turned away from the airport.

“There is not much we can do. These are UAE rules. I have been traveling to Dubai frequently as an Emirates Airline staff and I, too, have a manual passport, and we have been told by our company to get biometric passports,” he said.

Like with the United States and other Western nations, one of the conditions for getting a UAE visitor/tourist visa is a biometric passport. “If you apply for an Emirati visa at their embassy in Riyadh, then the first thing they ask for now is an electronic passport,” he added.

The Pakistan Embassy in Riyadh and the Pakistani Consulate in Jeddah, like missions of other countries, have been issuing biometric passports for years now. However, those who still possess a valid, old-style passport did not see the need to replace it.

“I never had a problem with this passport, and so I never thought of getting a machine readable passport,” added Bazidpuri. “Now, however, I have to. There is little choice.”