RIYADH – In a drastic change, all Gulf Cooperation Council residents irrespective of their profession are now eligible to apply electronically for a tourist visa to Saudi Arabia, it emerged on Thursday.
With the tourist visa, besides visiting various regions of the Kingdom, Umrah can also be performed and the relaxation will allow GCC residents to explore the country, participate in entertainment events, and inspect the culture and history of the oil-rich state.
The Kingdom’s Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb said the visa application is now simpler, more convenient and straightforward for residents of GCC states, regardless of their profession. Another benefit is that the visa type would be multiple as well.
The GCC residents can get the visa by applying through the ‘Visit Saudi’ platform, with the condition that their residency permit should be valid for at least three months and passport for at least six months. This also applies to accompanying first-degree relatives of the residency holder and domestic workers visiting the kingdom with their sponsors.
A restriction in this case is that the tourist visa does not allow the holder to perform Hajj or perform Umrah during the Hajj season.
Saudi Arabia is set to welcome 2.3 million pilgrims for Hajj this year as the restrictions regarding the pandemic have been lifted and this is the first time after Covid, the pilgrims count has been restored to pre-pandemic levels.
According to official figures, Saudi Arabia’s total foreign and domestic tourists reached 93.5 million during 2022. Total tourism spending amounted to SR185 billion during the year which is an increase of 93 percent as compared to the previous year.
What is GCC
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) is a regional organisation with six members: The Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, the State of Qatar, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
