Nationals from eight countries will now be granted electronic tourist visas, as announced by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism.
The new changes mean that citizens from Albania, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Georgia, Maldives, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan are now eligible to apply for a tourist visa to Saudi Arabia either electronically or at KSA international ports of entry, the Ministry noted through a statement.
The decision came as part of efforts to boost the tourism sector within the government’s program Saudi Vision 2030, VisaGuide.World reports.
The Tourism Ministry emphasized that the visa permits tourists to travel to various areas across Saudi Arabia and also allows them to perform Umrah.
However, visitors are required to meet the regulations while in the Kingdom, taking into account holding their IDs at all times. The Ministry also said that the tourist visa doesn’t allow its holders to perform Hajj or Umrah during the Hajj season.
The program was introduced in 2019 and initially targeted just 49 countries, while the number has now surged to 57 following the new additions.
“By expanding the e-visas to 8 new countries, Saudi Arabia takes another step forward in opening its doors to the world and offering an easier and simplified travel experience for all visitors to the Kingdom,” the Kingdom’s Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb pointed out.
The Ministry of Tourism confirmed that the decision to expand more countries into this scheme comes following the country’s tourism strategy plan and the aspirations emphasized in Saudi Vision 2030, which is a program introduced by the Kingdom to achieve specific goals in line with the vision of Saudi Crown Prince as well as Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
“These include increasing the sector’s contribution to GDP from 3 percent to more than 10 percent, creating one million additional job opportunities with a preference for Saudi citizens, and attracting 100 million tourists by 2030,” the statement reads.
Previously, authorities in Saudi Arabia announced their new tourist visa program in order to attract residents from the United Kingdom, as well as those from the United States and Schengen zone, European Union, and Gulf states.
The announcement was confirmed by the Tourism Minister of Saudi Arabia, Ahmed Al-Khateeb, who noted that such changes were taken in order to increase the number of foreign nationals in the country.
The new changes also mean that passengers from Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, as well as UAE are also eligible to benefit from this scheme.