Saudi Arabia has added Mexico, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia to the countries whose citizens can apply for its tourist visa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Eligible travellers can apply for an eVisa online or obtain a visa on arrival, subject to the kingdom’s eligibility criteria, according to the Visit Saudi website. A transit or stopover visa is also available for passengers travelling through Saudi Arabia.
The tourist visa covers leisure travel, events and entertainment, Umrah, exhibitions and conferences, and visits to relatives and friends. The ministry said all visits remained subject to the kingdom’s applicable regulations, and that each visa category carried its own conditions.
The additions follow earlier extensions of the scheme to Kosovo and Guyana, and a pilot Package Visa that bundles flights, hotels and tourist entry, Gulf News reported. Saudi Arabia has also been negotiating easier travel with Central Asia, holding talks with Uzbekistan on visas and more flights in October.
The wider access comes as Saudi Arabia tightens entry elsewhere. It has suspended visas for travellers from Kenya over the Ebola outbreak, a move Kenya and Africa CDC are pressing it to reverse, while airlines continue to suspend Riyadh flights as King Khalid International Airport operates only partially after a Houthi attack in October.
