Around 85,000 Karachi Residents Leave Pakistan for Overseas Jobs in Nine Months

• Approximately 85,000 people from Karachi travelled abroad for employment between January and September 2026, representing 63 different professions and occupational categories.
• Labourers, drivers and general workers accounted for the largest share, with more than 73,000 departures combined.
• Hundreds of skilled professionals, including doctors, engineers, IT specialists, accountants and teachers, also left the country in search of overseas opportunities.

Karachi witnessed a significant outflow of workers and skilled professionals during the first nine months of 2026, with approximately 85,000 people leaving the city for employment opportunities abroad, according to figures covering the period from January 1 to September 30.

The departures included individuals from 63 different professions and occupational categories, ranging from doctors, engineers and information technology specialists to drivers, labourers and general workers.

The figures highlight the scale of overseas employment-related migration from Pakistan’s largest city, with both highly qualified professionals and workers in general labour categories seeking opportunities in foreign countries.

Labourers and helpers accounted for the largest number of departures, with 32,626 individuals travelling overseas during the nine-month period.

Drivers formed the second-largest category, with 20,556 people leaving Karachi for employment abroad, while another 20,332 individuals were classified as general workers.

Together, these three occupational groups represented 73,514 departures, accounting for approximately 86% of the reported total of 85,000 people.

The substantial number of workers in these categories indicates that overseas employment opportunities continued to attract people involved in transportation, manual labour and other general services.

However, the figures also reveal a notable outflow of highly educated and professionally trained individuals from Karachi.

Among the skilled professionals who travelled abroad were 560 doctors, reflecting the movement of medical practitioners seeking employment opportunities outside Pakistan.

The financial and accounting sectors also recorded departures, with 526 accountants and 233 financial analysts leaving the city during the reporting period.

Professionals working in information technology were similarly represented, including 298 computer programmers and 145 systems analysts.

The departure of these specialists reflects the participation of Pakistan’s technology workforce in international employment markets, where programming, software development and technical expertise remain important professional fields.

The healthcare sector recorded additional departures beyond doctors, including 96 nurses and 43 pharmacists who travelled abroad during the nine months.

The education sector was also represented, with 260 teachers leaving Karachi for overseas opportunities.

Aviation professionals were among those recorded in the figures, including six pilots, alongside aircraft technicians and other technical personnel.

The list further included engineers, budget controllers, designers, managers and X-ray technicians, demonstrating the diversity of professional backgrounds among people pursuing employment outside Pakistan.

Although the largest proportion of departures involved general workers and labourers, the presence of medical, financial, educational and technical professionals highlights the breadth of the city’s overseas employment movement.

The monthly figures showed that January, February, July and September recorded particularly high numbers of departures.

These four months emerged as the busiest periods for overseas employment-related travel from Karachi during the first nine months of the year.

The available figures did not specify the exact number of departures recorded in each month or provide a detailed breakdown of the destination countries.

They also did not identify how many individuals were taking up employment in Gulf countries, Europe, North America or other international labour markets.

The data covers departures recorded between January and September 30, 2026, and includes workers across 63 professional and occupational classifications.

While the figures provide a picture of the scale and composition of overseas employment migration from Karachi, they do not establish whether all individuals intend to settle permanently abroad or return to Pakistan after completing their employment contracts.