According to Article 17 of the Pakistani Citizenship Act of 1951

The [Federal Government] may upon an application being made to it in the prescribed manner containing the prescribed particulars grant a certificate of domicile to any person in respect of whom it is satisfied that he has ordinarily resided in Pakistan for a period of not less than one year immediately before making the application, and has acquired a domicile therein.

The following information was provided in a 16 September 1998 telephone interview with the First Secretary (Consular) of the High Commission for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in Ottawa:

A domicile certificate is issued by a local administrator and indicates the place of residence of a Pakistani citizen (i.e., rural or urban Sindh). It is also an acknowlegement of citizenship. Neither freedom of movement within Pakistan nor obtaining a job is dependent upon possessing a domicile certificate. A Pakistani citizen can move and set up a business anywhere s/he wants. A domicile certificate is helpful only in specific fields within the education and public sectors where the quota system is in place. For example, a certain number of government jobs are set aside for residents of rural Sindh, and therefore possessing a domicile certificate indicating that one's residence is there could affect one's employment possibilities.

Additional information on the domicile certificate can be found in PAK6954 of 2 October 1990.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

High Commission for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in Ottawa: 16 September 1998. Telephone interview with First Secretary (Consular).

Pakistan. Pakistan Citizenship Act, 1951.