Pakistan has cancelled more than 326,000 Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) over the past five years, figures shared by the Ministry of Interior in the National Assembly showed on Thursday, 29 October. The ministry said the cards were cancelled after they were found to have been obtained through fraud and forgery, including by Afghan nationals who had acquired Pakistani identity documents improperly.

The bulk of the cancellations came in 2026, with the ministry reporting 255,139 CNICs cancelled this year — a sharp jump on previous years. Officials said the action followed verification work that exposed identity cards obtained by misrepresentation, and that the cancellations were intended to protect the integrity of the national identity database.

Why the cards were cancelled

According to the ministry’s account, some Afghan nationals obtained Pakistani identity cards through fraudulent means, and the cards were withdrawn once the fraud was discovered. The figures were presented in the National Assembly as part of the government’s reporting on identity-document enforcement, and were also highlighted in broadcast coverage of the ministry’s security update.

What it means for identity checks

For ordinary citizens, the CNIC remains the key document for banking, travel and public services, which is why the government treats fraudulently obtained cards as a security matter as well as an administrative one. The reported figures do not suggest a general re-verification of genuine cardholders; the cancellations concern cards found to have been obtained improperly.

Sources: Bloom Pakistan reported the Interior Ministry figures; Aaj News broadcast coverage put the total at 326,341 cancelled CNICs.