Photo: Annemarie Sterian
Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, announced that GCC countries will be rolling out a unified Gulf tourist visa within the next two years. The new visa will likely be introduced sometime between 2024 and 2025 allowing visa holders to travel across the six Gulf countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
“This initiative is an integral part of the GCC 2030 tourism strategy, designed to elevate the tourism sector’s contribution to the GDP through increased inter-GCC travel and elevated hotel occupancy rates, transforming the GCC into a pre-eminent global destination for both regional and international tourists,” the minister said in a statement to Emirates News Agency.
Al Marri admits that the targetted rollout date could be affected by the readiness of each country’s internal systems as specific regulations and legislation for the visa are developed. However, tourism ministers from all GCC states have unanimously provided their endorsement for this rollout to be presented at the upcoming GCC summit. The minister further stated that the GCC joint tourism strategy “2023-2030” targets an annual increase of 7 percent in inbound trips to the region, this number has seen 136.6 percent growth since 2021.
According to Al Marri, the UAE is more than ready for the influx of tourists that this visa will bring. The Emirates Tourism Council has made plans for a tourist route within the country that connects the seven emirates. He also noted that the UAE is home to 1,114 hotel establishments, ranking second in the GCC after Saudi Arabia, which makes it well-equipped to deal with any projected growth in tourism.
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