# Smart scanners at all international airports: PM Shehbaz orders end to manual baggage checks and customs questioning

Source: Searchable (https://searchable.pk/news/pakistan/smart-scanners-at-all-international-airports-pm-shehbaz-orders-end-to-manual)
Type: News article
Author: Searchable Editorial
Published: 10 Oct 2026
Updated: 10 Oct 2026
Retrieved: 11 Oct 2026

> Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered smart baggage scanners imported at once for every international airport in Pakistan and told customs to stop harassing passengers with needless questions. Here is what changes for travellers.

**Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday ordered smart scanners to be imported immediately and installed at all of Pakistan's international airports**, so that passengers' baggage is screened by machine instead of being opened and searched by customs officials, [Dawn reported](https://www.dawn.com/news/2036166/pm-shehbaz-orders-installation-of-smart-scanners-at-airports). He also told officials that travellers must not be harassed through unnecessary questioning, [Business Recorder reported](https://www.brecorder.com/news/40443567/shehbaz-orders-end-to-unnecessary-questioning-of-air-passengers-by-customs-officials).

The orders came at a meeting in Islamabad on customs enforcement, attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and federal ministers Azam Nazeer Tarar, Musadik Malik, Ahad Khan Cheema and Attaullah Tarar.

## What the smart scanner order changes for passengers

According to the Prime Minister's Office, an "internationally established automated system" will screen baggage. The directions given at the meeting:

- Smart scanners are to be imported **immediately** for all international airports.
- Bags will be checked by the scanners rather than by hand at the customs counter.
- **Outdated screening procedures** are to be dropped.
- Passengers are **not to be questioned unnecessarily** or harassed by anyone.
- Staff in other airport services will be trained to international standards, with courtesy and respect for dignity as part of the training.

No deadline or cost was announced, and the PMO did not name a supplier. Until the scanners arrive, the existing checks at Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, Multan, Sialkot and the other international airports continue.

## Customs enforcement numbers shared at the meeting

The meeting was also briefed on the new nationwide Customs Enforcement Force, which brings enforcement into one organisation as part of FBR's anti-smuggling reforms. The Prime Minister credited FBR Chairman **Rashid Mahmood Langrial** and his team and repeated a zero-tolerance policy on tax evasion.

| Item | Figure |
| --- | --- |
| Indus Collectorate operations in its first three weeks | 80 |
| Goods seized in those operations | about Rs 205 million |
| Personnel deployed | 865 |
| Major transit routes covered | 26 |
| Goods valuers recruited (training in October and November) | 280 |

Operations are running against smuggled textiles, vehicles, cigarettes and petroleum products, and the meeting reviewed progress on Digital Enforcement Stations.

## What to do if you are flying soon

- Keep receipts for new phones, laptops and gold you carry, since duty rules have not changed with this order. Our [PTA mobile tax calculator](/tools/telecom/pta-mobile-tax-calculator) shows what a phone brought from abroad costs to register.
- For gold, check today's rate on the [gold price page](/data/gold-24k-tola) before you buy abroad.
- Overseas Pakistanis sending money home can compare rates on the [currency converter](/tools/finance/currency-converter).

We will update this story when the government names the airports, the supplier and a date for the first scanners.

## Frequently asked questions

**When will smart scanners be installed at Pakistani airports?**

The Prime Minister ordered them imported immediately on 10 October 2026, but no completion date has been announced.

**Will customs still check my bags?**

Yes, but once the scanners are in place bags will be screened by machine instead of being searched by hand, and officials have been told not to question passengers unnecessarily.

## Sources

- PM Shehbaz orders installation of smart scanners at airports (Dawn): https://www.dawn.com/news/2036166/pm-shehbaz-orders-installation-of-smart-scanners-at-airports
- Shehbaz orders end to unnecessary questioning of air passengers by customs officials (Business Recorder): https://www.brecorder.com/news/40443567/shehbaz-orders-end-to-unnecessary-questioning-of-air-passengers-by-customs-officials

How to cite: "Smart scanners at all international airports: PM Shehbaz orders end to manual baggage checks and customs questioning", Searchable, 10 Oct 2026, https://searchable.pk/news/pakistan/smart-scanners-at-all-international-airports-pm-shehbaz-orders-end-to-manual