Starting January 15, Uzbek nationals holding biometric passports will be exempted from a visa to enter the United Arab Emirates, as both governments have signed a memorandum to exempt ordinary and Special and Mission passport holders from visa requirements.
The news was shared by the Foreign Ministry of the United Arab Emirates after it was signed by Khaled Abdullah Belhoul, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Abdulaziz Akkulov, Ambassador of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the UAE, VisaGuide.World reports.
As part of the continued enhancing and strengthening of bilateral relations between the United Arab Emirates and the Republic of Uzbekistan and achieving the common interests of the two peoples, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding regarding mutual exemption from entry visas for holders of Special and Mission passport, as well as ordinary passport.
The agreement also exempts UAE ordinary passport holders, as well as those with a Special and Mission passport, from applying for an Electronic visa, which was the case before the agreement was signed. Now, UAE nationals can stay in Uzbect for up to 30 days per visit.
The move will further strengthen both countries’ passports, as the Visa Guide Passport Index shows that UAE currently ranks 34th at the international level, with an 86.19 passport score.
Currently, UAE passport holders can travel visa-free to a total of 131 countries while they are required to apply for an eTA to travel to three countries.
Visa-on-arrival (VOA) applies to UAE passport holders for travel to 34 countries, and another 32 countries require a visa from these nationals. Uzbekistan will now be removed from the list of 21 countries that require an e-visa from UAE nationals in order to enter.
Uzbekistan passport holders, on the other hand, are more limited in their travel plans as they have to apply for a visa to travel to 144 countries. The country has a VOA agreement with 32 countries, and eVisa is required for travel to 19 countries.
In total, Uzbeks can travel to 31 countries visa-free, ranking this passport as the 129th strongest in the world and accumulating a total of 25.09 passport scores.
Another passport to see a boost in passport ranking this year is Kosovo’s, which climbed by 90 positions up in the VisaGuide Passport Index.
Kosovo has jumped from the 188th position, where it was positioned in December, to 98th most powerful in the world, enabling its citizens to travel to 44 world countries visa-free. The most recent country to lift visa requirements for Kosovar nationals was the UAE.