Saudi Arabia introduces new free visa

Saudi Arabia has introduced a new free transit visa allowing stopover passengers to stay in the Kingdom for up to four days.

The transit visa comes into effect on Monday, and visitors can apply through the Saudia Airlines and Flynas websites, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. The visa will be processed immediately.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs introduced the visa in order to boost tourism – part of the Vision 2030 strategy, SPA reported.

The transit visa will be issued with plane tickets from Saudia and Flynas, and will be valid for three months.

It is the latest in a raft of visa reforms in Saudi Arabia, most recently with the introduction of visa-on-arrival for certain passport holders in September 2022.