This week, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Tourism officially launched the Package Visa.
Designed to be a landmark digital initiative and 'all-in-one' solution to encourage international travel to the Kingdom and simplifying the travel process; this new visa allows eligible tourists to secure visas, transit, and event tickets via a single digital booking process.
Commenting on the initiative, His Excellency Ahmed Al Khateeb, Saudi Minister of Tourism, said, "As Saudi's tourism sector continues to grow at pace, Package Visa reflects our commitment to making travel to Saudi more seamless for visitors. By integrating visa issuance with travel bookings, we are simplifying the visitor journey and creating a more connected travel experience. This initiative also strengthens collaboration across the tourism ecosystem and supports Saudi's position as an increasingly accessible global destination."
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What is the new 'Package Visa' in Saudi Arabia?
Described as an 'all-in-one', integrated visa and vacation package; rather than booking flights, hotels, and visas separately, eligible travellers can now secure everything simultaneously through a single digital process. The visa is valid for a duration of three months from the scheduled departure date, and is a single-entry visa.
By integrating tourist visa applications directly into curated travel bookings, the newly launched visa program allows international visitors to bypass separate, multi-step application protocols, blending the visa process seamlessly with flights connections, accommodation options, and even event scheduling and ticket booking.
This rollout builds directly upon Saudi Arabia’s broader, tech-driven tourism strategy, which successfully drew more than 29 million inbound visitors during 2025 through previous reforms and updates like the tourist e-Visa, visa on arrival, and the Stopover Transit Visa.
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Who is eligible for this visa?
During the current pilot phase, "eligible travellers" refers to citizens of the following seven countries who purchase an approved travel bundle through a certified provider. This includes tourists from the following nations:
- India
- Egypt
- Jordan
- Pakistan
- Bangladesh
- Indonesia
- Mexico
The Saudi Ministry of Tourism plans to add more nationalities as the program expands beyond these initial launch markets.
Are there any qualifications for this visa?
To qualify for the instant electronic visa under this new 'Package Visa' scheme, travellers from the currently approved countries must book a package that meets a few core criteria: it must include round-trip flights, a minimum two-day stay at a licensed hotel rated four stars or above, and meet a minimum spending threshold of SAR 4,000 for the first two days (plus SAR 1,000 for each consecutive day). The visa itself costs approximately SAR 405 per person, including the visa and mandatory health insurance package.
To maintain strict hospitality and reliability standards, the Package Visa has initially been launched exclusively through qualified travel and tourism service providers for the approved international markets. These authorised partners must meet defined service benchmarks and provide 24/7 customer support before the program transitions to a wider global rollout. For service providers, the unified system offers an opportunity to build richer itinerary bundles, optimise the customer booking journey, and encourage longer stays within the country.
It is important to note that this new visa type does not qualify visitors to participate in Umrah, although visitors on this visa are not restricted from visiting the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madinah during their stay.
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What is the difference between a regular visa and the new Package Visa?
Travellers (from eligible countries) no longer need to navigate separate government portals or wait on embassy processing times for visa applications and approvals. Because the new visa application is embedded directly into the booking engine, the electronic visa is generated instantly upon checkout, once all criteria are reached, providing a frictionless, zero-wait solution for international visitors.
