GCC countries approve Unified Tourist Visa
by | January 16, 2024
Members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have approved a unified tourist visa. On the 9th of November in 2023, the UAE’s Minister of Economy, Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri announced the implementation of a unified GCC visa to boost tourism and relations between the 6 countries that form the GCC.
What is the Unified GCC Tourist Visa?
The GCC unified tourist visa is a single visa that enables an individual to enter multiple nations with just one visa. Similar to the Schengen visa, it allows you to travel across six different countries: Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE, and Saudi Arabia.
It is expected to become operational between 2024 and 2025 and that it will only be valid for thirty days.
How can I apply for the Unified Tourist visa?
Anyone who wants to apply for the unified GCC tourist visa will be able to do so either through an embassy or official partners. Requirements, necessary documents for a GCC tourist visa and price are still unknown. Governments of the different countries are still working on integrating systems and considering security aspects.
What are the advantages of the visa?
The main advantages of the unified tourist visa are:
- Facilitating a boost in trade among GCC nations.
- Attracting more tourists: UAE’s Minister of Economy, Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri emphasized that this initiative aims to increase the number of visitors to the region, targeting 128.7 million visitors by 2030.
- Simplifying the movement of residents and tourists among these countries.
- Eliminating the need for multiple visas for travelers. Instead of obtaining multiple visas, you will only need one to travel to these six nations.
- Streamlining and avoiding complications in the visa application processes.
