Qatar has announced that it will now allow visa-free travel for citizens of 80 countries, including the United States.
Under the new rules, citizens of the affected countries will no longer need to apply or pay for a visa. Instead, they can obtain a free multi-entry waiver at their port of entry upon presentation of a valid passport with a minimum validity of six months and a confirmed onward or return ticket. For travelers from the U.S., the waiver will be valid for 30 days from the date of issuance and will entitle its holder to spend up to 30 days in the country, either during a single trip or multiple ones. The waiver may be extended for another 30 days.
In an announcement of the new policy Qatar tourism officials said that the move was the latest in a series of updates aimed at making travel to the country easier. Last month Qatar launched a new e-visa platform at www.qatarvisaservice.com, and in May the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) and Qatar Airways launched the +Qatar initiative, which is aimed at promoting the country as a stopover destination. Last year, QTA also opened a new representative office in New York, marking the tourist bureau’s seventh office location worldwide.
The move also comes following a summer of disruptions for the country’s travel sector. In June a diplomatic crisis erupted when nine countries – Mauritius, Mauritania, the Maldives, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen and Libya’s eastern-based government – severed ties with Qatar. Qatar Airways was banned from operating flights to or from those countries, as well as from overflying Saudi Arabian airspace, forcing it to reroute many of its flights.
Qatar Airways was also hit by this summer’s laptop ban, which was just lifted in early July. During the ban the airline implemented a “laptop loan” service that provided free laptops to business travelers who wanted to work on their flight.
Looking ahead, Qatar tourism officials said that they are considering further enhancements to the country’s visa policy, such as waiving visa requirements for holders of a residence permit or a valid visa from the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates), the UK, the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or the Schengen countries of the European Union. This waiver would allow eligible visitors to obtain an electronic travel authorization by completing an online application at least 48 hours prior to travel.
Below is a list of countries whose travelers can obtain waivers valid for 30 days entitling them to spend up to 30 days in Qatar:
- Andorra
- Argentina
- Australia
- Belarus
- Bolivia
- Brazil
- Brunei
- Canada
- Chile
- China
- Colombia
- Ecuador
- Panama
- Costa Rica
- Georgia
- Guyana
- Hong Kong
- India
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Japan
- Kazakhstan
- Lebanon
- Azerbaijan
- Macedonia
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Mexico
- Moldova
- Monaco
- New Zealand
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Russia
- San Marino
- Singapore
- South Africa
- South Korea
- Suriname
- Cuba
- Thailand
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Uruguay
- Vatican City
- Venezuela
Nationals of the following countries can obtain waivers valid for 180 days entitling them to spend up to 90 days in Qatar:
- Austria
- Bahamas
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Seychelles
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
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