The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Tourism has announced that citizens of eight nations will now be able to obtain electronic tourist visas.
In light of the recent modifications, people from Albania, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Georgia, the Maldives, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan can now apply for a tourist visa to Saudi Arabia either online or at KSA international ports of entry, the Ministry noted in a statement.
The Saudi Vision 2030 government program “Visa Guide” which aims to
increase the tourism industry, played a role in the decision.
The tourism ministry emphasized that the visa enables visitors to visit various locations throughout Saudi Arabia and also enables them to perform Umrah.
Visitors must, however, abide by the rules while they are in the Kingdom, including keeping their IDs on them at all times.
The tourist visa does not permit its holders to perform the Hajj or Umrah during the Hajj season, according to the Ministry. . As of now, 57 countries have been added to the program, which was originally only intended to target 49 when it was first introduced in 2019.
“By extending the e-visas to 8 new
countries, Saudi Arabia takes another step toward opening its doors to the world and offering an easier and simplified travel experience for all visitors to the Kingdom,”
noted Ahmed Al-Khateeb( the Kingdom’s Minister of Tourism) .
The Saudi Vision 2030 program, which was introduced by the Kingdom to achieve specific goals in line with the vision of Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, was the inspiration for the decision to include more nations in this initiative, according to the Saudi Ministry of Tourism, which also confirmed that the decision to do so follows the country’s tourism strategy plan and the aspirations emphasized in that plan.
According to the statement, these goals
include
- Growing the sector’s GDP contribution from 3 percent to more than 10 percent,
- Adding one million new jobs with a preference for Saudi nationals, and bringing in 100 million tourists by 2030.
- In order to draw citizens from the United Kingdom, the United States, the Schengen area, the European Union, and Gulf states, the Saudi Arabian government previously announced its new tourist visa program.
Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Saudi Arabia’s minister of tourism, confirmed the news and noted that the changes were made to attract more visitors from abroad. Due to the
recent changes, passengers from Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE are now also eligible to take advantage of this program.
