How we check our figures
Every fee and processing time on this site is checked against NADRA’s own published schedule, not against other guides. This page explains how, lists what we have got wrong and corrected, and is honest about what we still do not know.
One source, and a date on every figure
Fees and timelines come from NADRA’s published fee structure. At the last check that page carried the version string V3.1.2, updated 07-07-2026.
Every guide that quotes a fee also names the source and the date we checked it. If you are reading a figure here with no date attached, treat it as unverified and tell us.
The date matters more than it looks. Government fees change, and a guide with no checked-on date gives you no way to judge whether it is current or three years old.
Why this is harder than it should be
When we compared the CNIC fee tables published by three widely read Pakistani guide sites on 22 August 2026, we found three different fee schedules. Two of them split fees by card type. One did not. None of the three linked to NADRA.
The reason they disagree is that NADRA publishes two separate CNIC schedules, one for the Smart chip card issued by default and one for the older non-smart card. A guide that quotes one schedule without naming the card type looks like it contradicts a guide quoting the other.
The part almost nobody publishes: on Normal processing the non-smart card is not only cheaper, it is faster. NADRA lists 15 days for the non-smart card against 31 days for the Smart card. Most guides do not mention that the non-smart card exists at all.
This is why our fee tables always name the card type, and why we now show both schedules side by side rather than picking one.
What we got wrong, and when we fixed it
We publish our corrections rather than editing quietly. These are the corrections made to guides that were already live.
| Date | What was wrong | Corrected to |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Aug 2026 | Processing times were given as 25 to 30, 10 to 15 and 5 to 7 working days | 31, 23 and 9 days. NADRA states these as days, not working days, and states that the clock starts after the fee is paid |
| 22 Aug 2026 | Fee tables did not say which card the fees applied to | Tables labelled Smart CNIC, with a direct link to NADRA’s schedule |
| 23 Aug 2026 | Only the Smart CNIC schedule was shown | Both official schedules now appear, Smart and non-smart |
| 23 Aug 2026 | A note said the non-smart card “takes longer” | It is cheaper and faster on every tier. The original note was simply wrong |
The fees themselves were correct throughout. The processing times were not, and that error was the more useful one to find: somebody planning around “10 to 15 working days” when the real figure is 23 days would have been caught short.
What we do not know
A published schedule cannot answer everything, and we would rather say so than guess.
- Whether the free non-smart option is actually offered at your centre. NADRA publishes the tier. Whether a counter will issue you that card on the day is not something any published document settles. Ask, and do not assume.
- Whether there is a witness route in place of a birth certificate. We have seen this claimed elsewhere with a specific 2026 deadline attached. We could not find it on NADRA’s site and we are not repeating it until we can.
- Centre-level variation generally. Staffing, queue systems and accepted payment methods differ, and we do not have first-hand reports from every city.
Tell us if we are wrong
If a figure here does not match what you were charged, or a step does not match what happened to you, tell us. Corrections to live guides get logged on this page with a date.
We are not NADRA
AsaanPakistan is an independent guide site. We are not affiliated with NADRA or any Pakistani government department, we cannot process applications, and we never ask you to pay us for anything. All official transactions happen at NADRA, through their centres or their own app and website.