The predecessor to Pakistan’s new passport will not be remembered for its security. Apart from being easy to forge, the document was issued manually, giving rise to considerable security risks. All the more reason, therefore, for the Pakistani authorities to develop a secure passport, issued with a minimum of human intervention. To make sure that the passport would be accepted by the world community, the authorities opted for a state-of-the-art, ICAO-compliant and biometrically-enabled document, protected by the latest security features. The result did not disappoint ‑ the new passport is a highly secure, tamper proof document that reflects the true spirit of the latest ICAO standards. Saleem Ahmed Moeen discusses its development.