Wednesday, April 15, 2026

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Kuwait announces visa on arrival for GCC residents

Kuwait has announced that expatriate residents of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are now eligible to obtain a tourist visa upon arrival, provided they hold a residency permit valid for at least six months.

TAS News Service

info@thearabianstories.com

Sunday, August 10, 2025

Kuwait – The new regulation, issued by First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef and published in the Kuwait Alyoum official gazette, came into immediate effect on Sunday. It replaces a previous law from 2008 that governed the entry of non-Kuwaiti residents from other GCC nations.
Under the revised rules, foreign nationals living in any GCC member state—Oman, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain—can now enter Kuwait as tourists without the need for prior visa approval, as long as their residency is valid for six months or more.
The Ministry of Interior stated that the decision aims to simplify travel for the region’s sizable expatriate population and bring Kuwait’s visa policies in line with broader Gulf trends that promote mobility and regional integration.

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