Last Updated on: 23rd July 2023, 03:58 am
Saudi Arabia Releases e-Visas For UAE, India, Bangladesh, And Other Countries
Saudi Arabia has officially stopped issuing visa stickers and replaced them with e-visas in seven countries. According to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the decision to issue e-visas with QR codes came into effect on May 1, 2023.
The countries that will benefit from this initiative are Jordan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, India, Bangladesh, the Philippines, and Indonesia.
The e-visa movement aims to digitize the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ consular services and create a new way of issuing work, residence, and visit visas for the above countries.
Schengen Visa For The United Arab Emirates And The Gulf States
Bahrain’s Tourism Minister Fatima Al Sairafi announced that Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, including the United Arab Emirates, are planning to introduce a “Schengen-style visa” to attract more tourists and generate revenue.
He made the announcement during a panel discussion on “The Future of Travel for the GCC” at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2023, taking place at Dubai World Trade Center.
Furthermore, Al Sairafi predicted that this could happen very soon as people vacationing in Europe visit multiple countries on a single visa instead of just one. He emphasized that such an approach would benefit not only every country but the entire region.
Speaking about tourism in Bahrain, Al Sairafi noted that the country has attracted a large number of tourists over the past year, mainly due to its joint promotion with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This is reflected in the tourist numbers last year when it received around 9.9 million travelers instead of the targeted 8.3 million.
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