Dubai International Airport (DXB) processed 3.2 million passengers travelling to and from Pakistan in the first nine months of 2025, making Pakistan its fourth-largest market, Dubai Airports announced on Wednesday. The airport continues to serve as a major hub for Pakistanis travelling for tourism, business, family visits, employment, and onward connections to Europe, the Middle East and North America.
The UAE and Pakistan remain strong partners in tourism and labour mobility, with consistent year-round travel demand. This surge contributed to DXB recording the highest quarterly traffic in its 65-year history, welcoming 24.2 million passengers between July and September — a 1.9% increase compared to the same period last year.
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From January to September, total passenger traffic reached 70.1 million, up 2.1% year-on-year. Dubai Airports also reported that its 12-month rolling traffic hit a record 93.8 million passengers by the end of September. India remained DXB’s largest market with 8.8 million passengers, followed by Saudi Arabia with 5.5 million and the UK with 4.6 million, while Pakistan ranked fourth ahead of the United States.
Operational performance at DXB remained exceptionally strong, with almost all travellers clearing immigration and security checks within minutes. Dubai Airports said that 99.6% of departing passengers passed through passport control in under 10 minutes, while 99.8% of arriving passengers waited less than 15 minutes.
To meet rising demand — particularly from South Asian travellers who form a key portion of Dubai’s visitor base — the airport is upgrading facilities at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3. Aircraft movements also remained robust, with 115,000 flights handled in the third quarter and 336,000 flights in the first nine months of 2025.
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