egypt visa policy

Having a visa to go to Egypt is really important if you are planning to go to Egypt soon. However, following the Egypt visa policy while taking one is also a matter of importance. Getting a visa becomes important only for those who come from a foreign country. So for those who are already a citizen or are from a visa-free entry country then you might as well need not take a visa to go to Egypt. But this is possible only if your country’s name has been already put up on the list. Apart from this even if you have no visa, a passport is another important document that will be required for you to get an entry. 

It was in March 2015 that the government of Egypt had announced that all foreigners need to carry a visa in advance if they wished to travel to Egypt. However, there has been an exception created just for those groups who visit Egypt under the guidance of travel agencies. 

Visa-free travel to Egypt:

As mentioned before, the travelers whose country’s names were included in the visa-free travel list need not take a visa to go to Egypt. There are nine countries that come under this list which can be given as follows:

The above-listed names can enter Egypt and stay for as many as 3 months. However, this facility for Lebanon citizens is limited only for those that enter through the Borg El Arab Airport or through Hurghada Airport or through Sharm el-sheik Airport. Apart from this the Malaysian citizens once they enter Egypt without a visa can stay only up to 14 days. There are other conditions that are applicable to other visa-free travel countries. To know more about this you can check out the Egypt visa-free countries and its details.

Visa on arrival facility:

A visa on arrival facility was generated by the government of Egypt to have a more enhanced way of providing a visa. This not only had the visa officials getting easy work done but was also beneficial for the foreigners as all they had to do was get a visa after they arrive at Egypt airports. This, however, was only convenient for a short while till the e visa came into action. The countries that are able to use this facility can also use the e visa facility. Just because e visa has been started doesn’t mean that this facility has stopped. You can still get a visa on arrival, though e visa will also be an option. The countries who are able to get this facility can be stated as below:

All the above-given country’s nationals can easily get a visa based on their passport or in case of the nationals of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, and Portugal who just need to show their id cards to get an entry. You can check out a lot more information about this visa on arrival facility by checking out the Egypt visa on arrival blog which not only mentions the above-given countries but also gives out other such conditions that need to be followed in order to get a visa.

Electronic visa facility:

Just as mentioned before, this is the latest technology that foreigners can have access to and is of ultimate benefit for the foreigners and for the suppliers. The workload is also known to have been reduced to almost half while having an e visa. This type of visa ensures both securities of your information while also reducing the amount of paper waster during the submission of different documents. With just some scans and uploads you can easily get a visa while sitting at your home. The following countries can get an e visa facility:

It was on the 3rd of December 2017 that this decision was made successful. This visa provided was initially only a tourist visa which was available for a stay of 30 days. However, now due to advancements in the online processing, business visas and many other such visas are also being provided. You can check the Egypt visa application and requirements for Egypt visas.

Sinai resort permission stamp:

This stamp is provided to nationals across the world apart from those countries that will be mentioned in the list. This list will contain all those countries that cannot have access to this service. By now there have been three countries whose nationals can get this visa. The countries are as follows:

1. Citizens of all European Union countries
2. The united states
3. Israel 

However, Israelis can enter only on a condition which states that they have to enter through the Taba border crossing in order to get this service. Also, this visa is given to only those nationals from the above-stated countries that will be traveling to Sharm el Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba, and Taba resorts. The condition also states that they should not leave the resort and stay will only be given for 14 days without a visa. This Sinai resort permission stamp is basically a stamp that allows the nationals of the countries to enter Egypt without a visa. 

The countries apart from those mentioned whose nationals can get this facility will have to enter Egypt through Sharm el Sheikh, Saint Catherine, or Taba airports. The countries that cannot access includes the following 81 countries:

Transit through Egypt without a visa: 

Transiting through Egypt might not need a visa for most of the nationalities around the world. However, this transit without a visa will only be available for those who stay in Egypt for less than 48 hours before their next flight. This means that if you are going to stay in Egypt for more than 48 hours before departing to your final destination you might probably have to take a visa which can be a tourist visa which will allow a stay for 30 days. Not only this, but the citizens of Iran also cannot avail of this visa-free transit service as they need to hold a transit visa each time they transit through Egypt. The other nationalities that will be staying in Egypt between 6 hours and 48 hours can leave the airport premises which means they can enter Egypt without a visa. But the exit for those below 6 hours will be restricted. These foreigners will have to stay on the airport premises, although they can leave the transit area to roam about. The nationals of Afghanistan, Philippines, Palestine, and Lebanon will, however, need to stay in the transit area itself and should continue their journey with the same onward flight or the flight which first connects to their final destination.

Countries whose nationals require State security approval:

The following countries will need special permission which is given by the Egyptian state security authorities and this permission must be held along with the visa while entering Egypt. The countries that need this permission can be given as follows:

Apart from the above-given countries there are other nationals who need this permission and can be given as follows:

• The citizens of Belize who are of Lebanese origin
• Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina who are of Egyptian origin
• Citizens of Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia if they want a visa
• Citizens of china if they apply for the visa outside china
• Citizens of Sudan if they are not currently residing in Sudan
• The female citizens of Moldova who are aged between 15 and 35
• The male citizens of Palestine, those who hold a Jordanian passport with a stamp from the Jordanian registration office
• The male citizens of Libya who require a visa.

Visa exemption for other types of passports:

Those people holding a diplomatic, service, an official, or special passports can go to Egypt without a visa. The list of the countries holding these types of passport can be divided into five groups:

 1. Those countries whose nationals hold diplomatic, service, special or an official passport:

2. Those countries whose nationals hold diplomatic or official passports:

1. India
2. South Africa

3. Those countries whose nationals hold diplomatic or service passports:

4. Those countries that hold a diplomatic or special passport:

• Portugal

5. Those countries that hold only a diplomatic passport:

The countries that have been mentioned above can get visa-free travel to Egypt provided they belong to specific categories and hold the passports that have been mentioned. Now by following all the norms set by the Egypt visa policy one can get to Egypt without an issue!