The federal government has extended the Proof of Registration card for Afghan citizens by six months.

Reports said that the decision was taken by the cabinet by approving a summary sent by the Ministry of States and Frontier Regions on Wednesday.

The extension had been requested by the ministries of interior and foreign affairs.

The extension will be in effect from July 1 to December 31, 2023. The POR cards had expired on June 30.

The extension will be applicable to Afghan refugees and their families who are around 1.3 million in number.

Read: Rights activist Fatima Atif claims Afghan refugees forcefully expelled

The step comes after over 200,000 undocumented refugees were sent back across the border to Afghanistan.

The government has set November 1 deadline for Afghan refugees to leave the country, as part of the government’s crackdown on illegal immigrants.

Islamabad says it took the decision after Afghan nationals were found to be involved in crimes, smuggling and 14 suicide bombings out of 24 this year, alleging that the militants use Afghan soil to train fighters and plan attacks inside Pakistan.

Kabul denies this, saying Pakistani security is a domestic issue.

Pakistani authorities started rounding up foreigners, most of them Afghans, hours before the deadline of November 1. Undocumented people who do not leave face arrest and forcible expulsion.

The authorities said they were open to delaying repatriation for people with health or other issues that would bar them from travelling.

Earlier, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar said that terror attacks in Pakistan have increased by 60% since the Taliban-led government took over Afghanistan two years ago.

Speaking to the media in Islamabad before departing for Tashkent on an official visit, Kakar said that Pakistan had deep ties with Afghanistan and has hosted millions of refugees for almost over four decades.