Are eight million Afghan refugees currently living in Iran?

KABUL (Pajhwok): Advisor to Irani’s foreign minister Mohammad Reza Bahrami says eight million Afghan refugees are currently living in the neighbouring country. But how accurate this figure is?

Acting Minister of Refugee and Repatriation Maulvi Abdul Kabir met Bahrami and Iranian Ambassador to Afghanistan Ali Reza Bigdeli here on Friday, the Ministry of Refugee and Repatriation said in a statement.

During the meeting, Bahrami pointed out: “Iran currently hosts eight million Afghan nationals, of whom around four million without legal documentation or residency authorization.”

However, the Ministry of Refugee and Repatriation (MoRR) in Kabul does not consider this figure accurate, even though it was included in their official statement.

Maulvi Abdul Mutalib Haqqani, spokesman for the ministry, told Pajhwok Afghan News: “These numbers are not accurate. The Iranian official has significantly exaggerated the figures—it was his personal statement.”

He clarified that around three million Afghan refugees were currently living in Iran.

He explained: “Most Afghans in Iran are not officially considered refugees. Many travel there for work or medical treatment through both legal and illegal means. They usually return after a few weeks or months. Perhaps the Iranian side is also counting them, but they are not classified as refugees.”

According to the ministry, there are currently about seven million Afghan refugees living around the world—approximately three million in Iran, as many others in Pakistan and the remaining scattered across other countries. Some of them hold legal residency documents, while others do not.

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