RIYADH – The kingdom of Saudi Arabia has launched the service of issuing electronic stop-over Transit Visa by air for all purposes from Monday.
According to the policy, the visa holders can stay in the country for four days while the duration of the visa is three months. Interestingly, the visa is free of cost and it will be issued right away along with the flight ticket.
The ministry has launched the service in collaboration with the relevant authorities and in cooperation with the Saudi national airlines, Saudi Gazette reported.
Under the Transit visa, tourists can now enter Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah and visit the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah besides traveling inside the Kingdom and attending other events in what appears to be a major sigh of relief for the arriving tourists.
The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has clarified that applications for transit visas can be submitted through the electronic platforms of Saudi Arabian Airlines and Flynas which will automatically be routed to the Unified National Visa Platform at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The processing and issuance of visa would be done instantly which will be sent to the applicant’s e-mail address.
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia is implementing its Vision 2030 which includes shifting revenue sources away from oil which are rapidly depleting with each passing year. The country hosts two of Islam’s holiest sites and every year millions of pilgrims head to the country for hajj and Umrah. The county has announced that it will welcome 2.3 million pilgrims this year for Hajj as Covid restrictions have been largely lifted.
