The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations are set to initiate the pilot phase of a unified tourist visa in the fourth quarter of this year, announced Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism and Chairman of the Emirates Tourism Council.
This unified GCC tourist visa, akin to the Schengen visa, will enable travelers to visit all six GCC countries, marking a strategic move towards regional cohesion and enhancing the Gulf’s allure as a unified tourist destination.
In a conversation with the UAE news agency Wam, Al Marri mentioned that the complete implementation of the visa, known as the GCC Grand Tourist Visa, will occur at a subsequent stage.
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The minister, however, did not specify the exact launch date for the single GCC visa.
On June 16, 2025, Al Marri informed Khaleej Times that the GCC single tourist visa has received approval and will be introduced “soon.”
“The single GCC tourist visa has been approved and is awaiting implementation. It is now with the Ministry of Interior and relevant stakeholders for further processing,” Al Marri commented during an interview at the UAE Hospitality Summer Camp.
The GCC Grand Tourist Visa will allow international tourists to explore the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait with just one visa.
Details regarding the visa’s cost and duration are yet to be announced.
Industry leaders in travel and tourism anticipate that this visa will revolutionize the regional tourism sector and boost the economy, creating numerous jobs and significantly impacting GDP. It is expected to enhance both religious and ‘bleisure’ tourism in the region.
Experts predict that while all GCC countries will benefit from this new visa, the UAE and Saudi Arabia will attract the highest number of tourists.
In 2024, the UAE hosted 3.3 million visitors from GCC nations, representing 11 percent of total hotel guests, as per Al Marri. Saudi Arabia was the highest contributor with 1.9 million visitors, followed by Oman with 777,000, Kuwait with 381,000, Bahrain with 123,000, and Qatar with 93,000.
The UAE minister shared with Wam that the number of commercial licenses in tourism, hospitality, aviation, air transport, aviation technologies, and digital tourism solutions in the UAE reached 39,546 by mid-September 2025, marking a 275 percent increase from mid-September 2020.
