Kosovo and Qatar are planning to remove visas for each other’s citizens, Kosovo’s president Vjosa Osmani revealed after a phone conversation with the Amir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hammad Al Thani.
In addition to visa waivers, they also discussed initiatives to enhance Kosovo’s global recognition and broaden investment prospects, VisaGuide.World reports.
Osmani said that Kosovo and Qatar have excellent relations and called the Amir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hammad Al Thani, a great friend and ally of Kosovo.
We discussed the excellent Kosovo-Qatar relations, efforts to strengthen Kosovo’s international standing, expanding investment opportunities & the upcoming agreement on mutual visa waiver.
Despite visa restrictions, the two countries have collaborated and reached agreements in several fields for years. Kosovo also has an embassy in Doha, Qatar. Meanwhile, the latter has no diplomatic mission in Kosovo at the moment.
Since January 1, 2024, Kosovars have been granted the right to travel visa-free for short terms to EU’s Schengen Zone countries after an 11-year-long process.
After Kosovo joined Europe’s visa-free Schengen zone, countries outside thev EU have also started removing visa requirements for Kosovars.
On January 11, the United Arab Emirates removed visas for Kosovo following a proposal from Kosovar’s president, Vjosa Osmani.
That month, Kosovo agreed with Saudi Arabia to exempt diplomatic and official passport holders from visa requirements. Apart from the visa waiver, the agreement included discussions on economic cooperation, defence collaboration, counterterrorism efforts, and the initiation of agreements in areas such as transport, education, and sports.
Meanwhile, on January 17, the United Kingdom granted visa-free entry to the Ministry of Defense and the Security Force of Kosovo personnel engaged in military and official activities.
Recently, Israel removed visa requirements for Kosovar passport holders. This implies that citizens of Kosovo can travel visa-free to Israel for tourism purposes.
Among EU countries, Spain also removed visa restrictions for Kosovo earlier this month despite not recognizing its independence.
Due to visa liberalization, Kosovo’s passport jumped by 90 positions up in VisaGuide.World Passport Index.
This is a historical achievement for Kosovo and a historical climb up in the passport strength index, which showcases that only the EU has the exclusive authority to increase the power of a passport overnight to such an extent.
At present, Kosovo’s passport ranks 98th among the most powerful passports in the world, according to the VisaGuide.World Passport Index. This implies that, among other things, Kosovar citizens can travel without a traditional visa in 44 countries and passport-free in four neighboring countries.
Last year, Kosovars could travel visa-free in only 11 countries before visa liberalization.