Millions of Afghan migrants and refugees in Iran have been asked to leave or face arrest as a government-imposed deadline expired on Sunday, amid growing public concerns over national security following Iran’s recent 12-day conflict with Israel.
The looming threat of mass expulsions comes as Iran accelerates its campaign to remove undocumented foreign nationals,. The crackdown has drawn concern from humanitarian organizations, who warn that the deportations could further destabilize Afghanistan, already one of the world’s most impoverished and fragile nations.
Iran is home to an estimated four million Afghan refugees and migrants, many of whom have lived in the country for years or even decades. In March, Tehran gave Afghan nationals without legal residency until July 6 to leave voluntarily or face forced deportation.
Since the order was issued, more than 700,000 Afghans have left the country, and another 230,000 were expelled in June alone, according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration. Hundreds of thousands more now face an uncertain future.
Among those at risk are over two million people holding “census permits” — temporary identification cards issued by Iran’s Ministry of Interior in 2021 to undocumented migrants. Those documents expired Sunday, and without an extension, their holders are vulnerable to arrest and removal.
Amirollah Shamghedari, deputy security chief for Razavi Khorasan Province, said he has requested an extension from the central government. “We’ve asked the Interior Ministry to extend the July 6 deadline,” he said. “While no one supports illegal residency, enforcement must be humane.”
The Ministry of Interior has not yet responded publicly.
The “census permit” holders include various categories of migrants, such as those married to registered refugees, people with expired visas and passports, individuals with labor identification, and former Afghan officials from the previous government.
The crackdown has intensified since the recent military conflict between Iran and Israel, during which Iranian officials have linked undocumented migration to internal instability and threats to national security.
Many Afghan deportees say they were forcibly separated from their families or returned without any belongings. “We have no future,” said Sharafuddin, a deportee traveling to Baghlan Province. “My wife and children are still in Iran. All I can do now is wait and see what God decides.”
Despite international condemnation from refugee rights advocates and humanitarian agencies, Iran has continued its expulsion campaign. Aid groups warn that those returned to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan face widespread economic hardship, lack of access to services, and in some cases, political persecution.
