Saudi Arabia to introduce new 90 days ‘host visa’ for Umrah pilgrims

• Under the new visa system, a citizen or expatriate can host from three to five Umrah pilgrims.
• The 'host visa' would costs SR500 per person for a year.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is all set to introduce a new visa, which allows citizens and expatriates to host three to five Umrah pilgrims under their personal sponsorship for up to 90 days.

The Directorate General of Passports (Jawazat) and the Ministry of Haj and Umrah will be introducing the “host visa” service through the Ministry of Interior’s portal ‘Absher’.

As per the Saudi Gazette, a citizen or expatriate can host from three to five Umrah pilgrims under the new visa system. The citizens can host anyone whereas, the expatriates can only bring in close relatives.

The host visa would costs SR500 per person for a year. The same person can be brought to the Kingdom at least three times in a year after issuance of separate visa for each travel through Absher.

The visa holders can travel freely throughout the Kingdom and participate in tourist activities. Meanwhile, the host citizens and expatriates would be responsible for their guests until their departure from the Kingdom.