KSA To Start Issuing Electronic Tourist Visa From Tomorrow

Chairman of the board of directors of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) Ahmad Al-Khatib Friday announced that Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will start issuing electronic tourist visa from Saturday (tomorrow)

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th Sep, 2019 ) :Chairman of the board of directors of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) Ahmad Al-Khatib Friday announced that Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will start issuing electronic tourist visa from Saturday (tomorrow).

"The electronic tourist visa will be issued within a record time of seven minutes and the beneficiaries of the visa include tourists from 49 countries," he said.

According to Saudi Gazette, the total cost for a multiple re-entry tourist is SR440 for a period of one year, and this includes SR300 government fee plus charges for health insurance, tax and transaction fee.

Tourists will be allowed to stay in the Kingdom for a maximum of 90 days during the year during which they can enter the Kingdom multiple times. The validity of one year will be counted from the date of issuance of the visa.

Women, unaccompanied by male relative, will be allowed to perform Umrah through this visa.

There is no need for the applicant to mention his religion while applying for the visa.

However, non-Muslims will not be allowed to visit Makkah and Madinah.

Al-Khatib said that SCTH will start a promotion campaign for the tourist visa in 14 capitals around the world, including London, New York and Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

He announced the establishment of a tourism development fund in the Kingdom as part of the Saudi tourism strategy to cope with the new development requirements that the Kingdom aspires to achieve within the Vision 2030.

He also announced the establishment of a tourism development council, which consists of several ministries including the Ministry of Interior, and other bodies linked to tourism and entertainment.

Al-Khatib said that the General Directorate of Passports (Jawazat) has provided training to its personnel on the working mechanism of tourist visas and they are professionally ready to receive tourists from countries all around the world.