Courts keep PMDC order sending Afghan medical students home on hold; Lahore High Court extends stay

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council wrote to medical and dental colleges on 31 July and again on 1 September 2026 directing them to complete departure formalities for enrolled Afghan nationals and barring admission, placement, transfer or migration of Afghan students this session, citing government policy. A follow-up letter reported by Minute Mirror on 8 September gave colleges three days to file compliance reports. Dow University told its Afghan students to collect documents and vacate hostels by 14 September, Arab News reported.

The Lahore High Court suspended both directives on 11 September on petitions by more than 30 Afghan MBBS and BDS students at King Edward Medical University, SKZMDC and SIMS, and barred Punjab colleges from expelling them or cancelling their exams; the Sindh High Court granted similar interim relief to 34 students in Karachi on 14 September. The LHC extended its order on 18 September and again on 16 October, The Express Tribune reported on 17 October, with the PMDC arguing the students' visas had lapsed and the Foreign Office saying Afghans with valid visas and valid enrolment may finish their degrees.

Afghan students in Pakistan should keep visa and enrolment documents current and follow the case through their college, as the relief is interim.