I am transiting through Saudi Arabia. Do I need a visa?

Question

I am transiting through Saudi Arabia via the airport at Riyadh (RUH), Jeddah (JED), or Dammam (DMM). Do I need a visa for this?

Answer 1

Whether you need a visa or not depends on many factors. In order from top to bottom:

If you are a citizen of a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) country

Citizens of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates do not need a visa for Saudi Arabia.

If you have a single ticket from the same airline, with a connection under 12 hours at the same airport

You do not need a visa, regardless of nationality. You will not be allowed to leave the transit zone in the airport.

Warning: a "self-transfer" booked through Kiwi.com or its competitors is not considered a single ticket, and you will likely need a visa!

If you are on your way to a third country, have a connection of over 12 hours at the same airport, and are flying Saudia or Flynas only

You are eligible for the free 96-hour stopover visa, regardless of nationality. The visa application must be made at the same time as your flight booking:

• Saudia: Stopover Visa
• Flynas: Transit/Stopover Visa

For Saudia only, you may be eligible for one free hotel night as well; see details at the link above.

If you are a national of an eligible country

You qualify for a tourist visa. You can apply online in advance at the link above (SAR 480), or receive a visa on arrival (SAR 535).

You can also opt to apply for a transit visa, which is slightly cheaper; see below.

If you hold permanent residence in the US, the UK or the EU; or you have a previously used US, UK, or Schengen visa

You can apply for an eVisa or visa on arrival, see above.

The PR/visa must be a currently valid tourism or business visa, and must have already been used at least once. For example, if you are traveling via Saudi to the EU for the first time, you do not qualify for the Saudi on-arrival visa on the way to Europe, but you do qualify on the way back from Europe.

If you are a resident of a GCC country

You can apply for an eVisa, see above. You are not eligible for a visa on arrival.

Your GCC resident permit must be valid for at least three months, and your passport valid for six months at least.

If none of these conditions apply

You must apply for a regular Saudi transit visa (or similar). The cost is 300 SAR.

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