Muscat – Lt Gen Hassan bin Mohsen al Shuraiqi, Inspector General of Police and Customs, has issued Decision No 132/2024 introducing new visa categories for cruise ship passengers and crew as part of amendments to the Executive Regulations of the Foreigners’ Residence Law.

The new regulations include ten-day and one-month visit visas, both designed to facilitate easier access for visitors arriving by cruise ships. The ten-day visa, available upon request from the cruise ship agent, allows passengers and crew to stay in Oman for up to ten days, provided entry is made within 30 days of the issue of the visa.

This visa will be issued free of charge.

Additionally, a one-month visit visa is also available upon request from the cruise ship agent, allowing passengers and crew to stay in Oman for up to one month. As with the ten-day visa, entry must be made within 30 days of visa issue.

The decision, issued on September 3, will take effect from Monday and expected to streamline the process for cruise ship visitors and support the growing cruise tourism sector in the sultanate.

Visitors increase 2.4% to 2.3mn

Oman’s tourism sector is growing with the number of visitors in 2024 reaching 2.3mn by the end of July, marking a 2.4% increase from the same period last year.

According to National Centre for Statistics and Information, the largest number of visitors hailed from the United Arab Emirates, totalling 714,636. India followed with 367,166 visitors, while Yemen contributed 139,354. Additionally, Germany and Saudi Arabia sent 79,439 and 63,678 visitors, respectively.

In the same period last year, there were 1.6mn arrivals from the GCC, 610,000 from India, 150,000 from Germany and 118,000 from Mainland China.

The resilience of Oman’s tourism sector is expected to continue, particularly over the medium-to-long term. The sultanate benefits from its accessibility to travellers from key source markets in the GCC due to regional proximity and strong transport links. Additionally, low barriers to entry combined with high household disposable incomes across these markets are likely to boost demand for experiential travel products and services.

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