After years of political agreement but slow execution, the Gulf Cooperation Council’s long-awaited unified tourist visa is finally in the homestretch. In remarks reported on 14 September, GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi confirmed that the six member states—United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait—have completed regulatory approvals and are now integrating the digital and border-management systems needed to issue a single permit for the bloc. The scheme, likened to Europe’s Schengen visa, will allow foreign visitors to enter one Gulf country and roam freely across the other five without re-applying. It aims to turn the region into a multi-stop destination, extend average length of stay and reduce friction for tour operators and MICE organisers that currently juggle six visa regimes. For the UAE’s tourism and events sector the implications are substantial. Dubai and Abu Dhabi already act as gateways for much of the region; a unified visa would formalise that role, enabling airlines and travel-tech firms to package cross-GCC itineraries with seamless ground segments. Real-estate and retail players also anticipate higher footfall from visitors who might previously have limited Gulf trips to a single city. Operationally, mobility managers must prepare for a hybrid period in which the unified visa co-exists with national schemes such as Dubai’s five-year multi-entry permit. Companies assigning staff across several GCC markets should update travel-policy matrices and ensure HR and security teams understand entry-exit rules as they evolve during pilot deployment. Officials have not released launch dates, fees or validity periods, but sources expect a phased roll-out beginning with leisure visas, followed by business categories. Stakeholders can monitor updates via UAE’s Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) and the GCC Secretariat website.
Source: Arab Time
