Saudi Official Anticipates Launch of GCC Unified Visa Next Year

According to Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Tourism, Ahmed Al-Khateeb, the long-anticipated GCC unified visa for Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is likely to be launched next year. The statement was made during his address at the Gulf Gateway Investment Forum held in Manama on Monday.

The proposed GCC visa, which has been in development for nearly four years, aims to streamline travel across the six GCC nations: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. According to Al-Khateeb, the unified GCC visa is part of a broader strategy to position tourism as a core pillar of the Gulf’s economy, alongside oil and trade.

Al-Khateeb highlighted the region’s potential as a global travel hub. He also pointed to its rich cultural heritage, modern infrastructure, and stable security environment. He said these factors are helping reshape the Gulf’s reputation as a top-tier destination for international travelers.

In support of the unified GCC tourist visa initiative, Al-Khateeb also pointed to recent aviation trends. He shared that the region’s four leading airlines transported nearly 150 million passengers last year, yet only 70 million of those journeys were within the Gulf itself, which he described as an opportunity for regional integration.

The momentum for the expected GCC Grand Tours visa has been building for quite some time. Earlier, the UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism, Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, stated that a pilot phase of the Unified Tourist Visa ‘GCC Grand Tours’ is expected in the fourth quarter of 2025. However, in the most recent statement, a longer wait for the rollout of the anticipated GCC unified tourist visa has been confirmed.

The process for the Gulf visa is anticipated to be fully online once launched. Applicants will use a single digital portal to upload required documents, choose between a single-country or multi-country option, and make a payment for submitting the visa application. The unified visa for GCC is expected to be valid for 30 to 90 days.