Four Passengers Offloaded at Lahore Airport Over Fake Turkish VisasPakistan

They were scheduled to travel to Turkey on flight 9P-502 when FIA immigration officials checked their travel documents and found that all four Turkish work visas were fake.

During the initial investigation, it was revealed that the passengers had paid a total of Rs5.7 million to different travel agents to obtain the fake visas.

FIA immigration officials offloaded all four passengers and handed them over to the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Lahore for further investigation and legal action.

The case is the latest in a series of FIA actions against fake travel documents at Pakistani airports. Public News also reported on Sunday that FIA officials had stopped passengers at Lahore airport before a flight to Turkey over fake visas.

FIA immigration officers check travel documents at airports before passengers board international flights, and passengers found with fake or tampered documents are offloaded and handed over to the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle for investigation.

In recent days, the FIA has reported similar cases at other airports. At Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport, a passenger was stopped for allegedly tampering with his passport to hide a previous deportation from Northern Cyprus, while at Islamabad airport a passenger bound for Turkiye was offloaded after officers found inconsistencies in his documents and stated purpose of travel.

Officials say agents who arrange fake visas and travel documents charge large sums from people hoping to work abroad, and that passengers who travel on such documents risk being deported and facing legal action on their return.

The four passengers offloaded at Lahore airport will now face investigation by the Anti-Human Trafficking Circle, which will also look into the agents who allegedly sold them the fake visas for Rs5.7 million.

The FIA has repeatedly advised people seeking work abroad to apply only through legal channels and to verify their visas and travel documents before travelling, rather than relying on agents who promise jobs overseas in exchange for large payments.