(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Irfan Bukhari / The Peninsula
Steps taken by Qatar this year to simplify entry of tourists to the country have caused relief for visitors and an overwhelming majority of people in an ongoing survey has termed entry permit procedures 'easy and simple.
The survey, being conducted by the Ministry of Interior on its web portal, around 77 percent participants have termed the entry permit (visa) procedure easy and simple.
To the question 'do you think that the new procedures for entry permits are easy and simple? asked by the Ministry, 49 percent people termed the procedures totally 'easy and simple while around 14 percent people agreed with procedures' easy and simple nature and 14 percent termed them easy and simple to some extent.
The poll was launched on September 28, 2017 and will end on October 31. This poll survey is part of permanent feature ‘Current Discussion' on Ministry's web portal in which people's feedback is taken on various issues.
Under this month's 'Current Discussion, the Ministry has selected 'procedures for entry permits (visas) to Qatar as the subject. 'The Ministry of Interior has accorded great attention to simplify entry procedures to the State of Qatar through its different ports, especially after the increase in the number of travelers, following the decision to allow citizens of more than 80 countries to enter the country without visa, the Ministry wrote on the web portal. A total of 1293 people took part in the survey. As many as 637 (49%) totally agreed with the statement, 179 (14%) agreed, 187 (14%) agreed to some extent, 211 (16%) people are not agreed with the statement that the procedures have become easy and simple while 79 (6%) people have expressed their ignorance on the subject.
In August this year, Qatar had eased its visa policies allowing citizens of 80 countries visa-free entry. With this announcement, Qatar had become the number one country in the region in terms of number of nationalities eligible to enter visa-free, making it the most open country in the region. Last month, in another move to facilitate visitors, Qatar made Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) available to visitors of all nationalities who held valid residence permits or visas from either the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Schengen countries, or the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
This new system, took effect on September 27, 2017, and is allowing eligible visitors to obtain an ETA by completing a simple online application prior to travel at www.qatarvisaservice.com.
As part of the application, applicants are required to provide proof of accommodation
(e.g. hotel booking), details of their return (or onward) travel, a copy of their passport with a minimum validity of six months, and a copy of their residence permit or visa to the aforementioned countries, with a minimum validity of 30 days.
Once the applicant's request is approved they receive an ETA that is valid for use within 30 days. The ETA's validity for use may be renewed for a further 30 days on www.qatarvisaservice.com.
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