overland Pakistan
 

First of all i would like to say Hello 2 everyone on this site, as i am new.....and i am planning a overland trip to pakistan from UK through Europe, and i wanted to know has anyone done this kind of trip recently and what are the procedures.....i will be takeing my car, and personally i dont want to take out a Carnet De Passage....any suggestions people......thank you......kind regards

FIrst of all, you'll have a job doing it without a carnet. There is I believe some sort of procedure for getting into Pakistan without one involving paying a hefty deposit on entry and getting escorted through, but AFAIK there is no way of getting into Iran without one.

What route are you looking at taking?

Hmm, don't agree with the above post.

Iran is perfectly possible without a carnet, but you have to pay some agency at the border for a kind of temporary import licence. The cost depends on how frequently the border is used, the more agencies, the cheaper it is. You're looking at about $150ish at Bazargan border, though a friend of mine paid about $400 at Mirjaveh. You only pay when you enter.

You can transit Pakistan without a carnet, and you don't need to pay a deposit as far as I know, BUT:

-You are escorted the whole time (not sure if you have to pay for this)
-You must transit the country in about 5 days (i.e. see none of it)
-Where are you going to go?? India will not let you in without a Carnet, for sure. China needs masses of paperwork and payments which make getting a carnet look very cheap and simple. Afghanistan does not need a carnet, but you need special permission from the Pakistani authorities to get to the Khyber Pass, and I doubt they would entertain this idea when you enter from Iran.

Overall, it's not a good idea. It's still not cheap, you'll see very, very little of Pakistan, and be escorted the whole time, and you'll then need to leave the car at the Indian border while you travel in India (you can collect it again when you come back).

With a carnet, you can stay 3 months in Iran and 3 months in Pakistan (extendable to 6 if you have a good reason), which will let you actually see and experience the country.

Daniel

danielsprague - the detail of my post might not have been 100% accurate (although there was no evidence whatsoever of any temporary import licence agency at the Sero border crossing between Turkey and Iran when we crossed there in July 2007) but I think we agree overall that a carnet is a good idea for these 2 countries.

hathan - so, where are you looking at going in Pak?

As far as I know this 'agency' is usually a bloke in an office somewhere. It's possible that the service isn't available at certain, less busy borders (e.g. Sero), but it's defintitely possible at Bazargan, Mirjaveh and Bandar Abbas Port.

But yes, it would be a daft trip without a carnet.

Daniel

Thanks for reply people, basically i have a dual nationalty British and pakistani, so i have british n pakistani Passport, as only pakistani people are allowed this, im not gona be going to india or china im gna be stopping in pakistani and im not gona bring the car back, i will be flying back to UK......basically im permamnent importing my vehicle, in the past lots of people have drove their cars overland fron UK, but no 1 recently so all the info im getting is old....thats why i ask on here.....thank you people suggestions will be appreciated...

Hi Hathan

Now that I realise you want to permanently import your car to Pakistan, and that you can get through Iran without a carnet, you are probably OK not bothering with a carnet as Iran is the only country on your route where it is a potential problem and it probably won't apply in Pak if your car is entering there and not leaving.

Exactly what paperwork you will need at the Iran/Pak border if you're permanently importing the car I don't know - to say nothing of the customs duty. But it must be doable, as not long after we arrived in Pak I was amazed to see how many cars there were in Quetta with UK number plates. I even put notes on the windscreens of a couple of them, thinking I was making contact with other overlanders, until it was pointed out that these were cars that had been permanently imported into Pak from the UK and were awaiting Pak registration. Certainly they didn't have any obvious signs of being overland-prepared. They may even have been shipped in through Karachi.

If you're British-Pakistani, it might also be a good idea to make enquiries in places like Bradford or Southall etc etc to see if there are any shipping agencies that specialise in this sort of thing.

Mark

Thanks alot Mark......and when did u go Pakistan overland........

August - October 2007 - have a look overlandcruiser.net

Also - my Grandfather was Ali Jinnah's VIP escort for a year at Partition time - have a look at the pictures!

Wow Mark your an amazing Personalty......you done it all...your pics are very nice.....Your Grandfather was close to a Great Man Jinnah was, now we left with all corrupt leaders.......and when you said you seen lots of UK registration cars in Quetta that was just confirmed by some one i no, and those cars were all Seized...and thats just the begining of the drama which follows.....Thanks alot for shareing with me your experience...keep me posted.

Ha - thanks. But I think it's more interesting if YOU keep US posted - your trip is about to begin!

Sure thing Mate,