If you are booking a flight on a Saudi Arabian airline and have a stopover in the country, you can now apply for a transit visa, free of cost.
In an official statement on January 30, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) confirmed that the service was now effective and passengers can apply for the transit visa through the electronic platforms of Saudia Airlines or flynas. The applications would then “be automatically passed to the unified national visa platform at MOFA, to process and issue the digital visa immediately and send it to the beneficiary via e-mail.”
How to apply for the free 96-hour transit visa through Saudia
1. Visit Saudia.com
2. Select your flight details – the port of departure and arrival and the dates of travel.
You will be provided with a list of the flights based on your preference. Select the flight you wish to take and click on ‘confirm’.
3. You will then receive the details of your route, with the option to ‘Visit Saudi Arabia’. Within this feature, you will get to select two options – ‘Visit Saudi’ or ‘Perform Umrah’. According to Saudia, a free night stay will be offered along with your ticket. You will then be asked for details of where you wish to stop over (Saudi Arabia has six international airports, and depending on your itinerary, you will be given the options available), and for how many days you wish to stay, with a maximum stay of four days.
