The number of passport applications has increased, according to the Interior Ministry, from 45,000 to 50,000 each day, despite the fact that only 20,000 to 22,000 passports may be given daily due to available resources.
Authorities blame out-of-date infrastructure and limited capacity for the delays.
The 2004 system was adequate at first, but as regional offices grew from 30 to 223 and foreign missions from 10 to 93, it has since been overburdened, Interior Minister Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi told the National Assembly in a statement.
Modern technical advancements have not kept pace with the increasing demand.
Months of waiting times for applicants have resulted from the delays, which were made worse by a scarcity of passport paper late last year.
