The National Assembly formally accepted Musharraf's resignation hours after a televised address on Monday announcing that he would step down.

The chairman of the upper house of the assembly, Mohammedmian Soomro, will serve as acting president until a successor is chosen.

Under Pakistan's constitution, the president is elected by a majority vote of Pakistan's four provincial assemblies and the two houses of the National Assembly. Musharraf swept to power in 1999 in a bloodless coup.

He had come under increasing pressure in recent weeks to quit, with the ruling coalition taking steps to impeach him. Local media reports said he had been granted "safe passage" out of the country.

Musharraf has been a keen ally of the West in the fight on terror, receiving billions in military aid from the US and launching attacks on militant groups near the country's border with Afghanistan.