Doha – The Supreme Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council authorized the Ministers of Interior to take the necessary measures to implement the unified Gulf tourist visa, welcoming the efforts made by the Committee of Interior Ministers regarding this matter, according to what was stated in the final statement issued by the meeting of leaders and leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries held in Doha. today.
According to the unified Gulf tourist visa system, anyone who obtains an entry or residence visa in one of the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries will be able to enter the rest of the countries with the same visa, similar to the Schengen visa that links European Union countries to each other.
The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, chaired the 44th Gulf Summit, which was held today, Tuesday, in Doha, which reviewed the developments of the steps that have been accomplished to achieve integration between the GCC countries and the most prominent issues of common concern, the most prominent of which was the situation in the Gaza Strip.
The Interior Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries had approved the unified Gulf tourist visa project during the 40th meeting held in the Omani capital, Muscat, on the eighth of last November, provided that the implementation will be carried out according to a specific timetable, with the aim of contributing to facilitating and streamlining the movement of citizens. Residents and tourists among the six GCC countries.
The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi, confirmed that the unified Gulf tourist visa project is a new achievement added to the achievements of the Gulf Cooperation Council, in light of the directives of the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries who paid their attention to the achievements of Gulf security cooperation.
⬅️ #DohaSummit The unified Gulf tourist visa is approved
⭕️ The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council in a dialogue with the East
Conducted by Mr. Jaber Al-Harami, editor-in-chief @jaberalharmi pic.twitter.com/A4WYfGVJjn– Al Sharq Newspaper – Qatar (@alsharq_portal) December 3, 2023
Keep pace with development
Professor of International Law at Qatar University, Nasser Al-Athba, said that the unified Gulf tourist visa undoubtedly keeps pace with the development witnessed by the Gulf countries and is an imperative necessity to continue the renaissance and modernity that all Gulf countries are experiencing.
Al-Athba added in an interview with Al Jazeera Net that the presence of many competencies in the Gulf countries and their movement between these countries comfortably makes these competencies strengthen the Gulf economy as a single unit and not as multiple units, and from here comes the importance of registering this movement, which the new visa helps with.
The same spokesman stated that many companies in the Gulf countries can easily transform from local companies within the countries in which they operate to international Gulf companies, as the director of a company in Saudi Arabia, for example, can easily move to another country to finish the work himself, which facilitates the acceleration of… Investments and push towards expansion in opening branches of local companies outside the framework of their work within their country, and then these companies will transform from local to international and regional, and perhaps in the future, Arab and global.
He explained that the unified visa has a major positive impact, especially on the tourism sector and then the economy in general, stressing that economic integration requires this step, but within the framework of certain controls.
Al-Athba specified these controls by restricting the granting of this visa to those with specific salaries and specific jobs, and that its issuance be linked to the criminal status sheet for whoever wants it, so that the sheet is white to ensure that no person escapes or commits any legal violations while moving from one country to another.
Urgent | #DohaSummitAuthorizing the Ministers of Interior to take the necessary measures to implement the unified Gulf visa
– Al Rai (@AlraiMediaGroup) December 5, 2023
Economic advantages
Economist Abdul Rahim Al-Hoor confirms to Al Jazeera Net that the advantages of the unified visa are many, pointing out that opening geographical regions in one region is a big and important step in strengthening the main axes of the comprehensive component of the region.
He explained that this matter means several axes, the first of which is enhancing economic activity in all its components, tourism and intra-trade, the opportunity to open markets for new projects, enhancing the operating efficiency of the workforce in the region, and unifying legislation and laws regulating whether tourism, transportation, education, or communications.
The economic expert pointed out the importance of this step being the beginning of expanding the scope of the joint visa in neighboring countries to promote the same concepts and achieve the same benefits, citing the European experience, which achieved great positive results after the introduction of the Schengen visa, which benefited all levels.
In the same context, Al-Hoor pointed out that: Exceptional interest forThe peculiarity of the Gulf countries is that they are countries with a multinational workforce, and therefore opening the door to movement for residents will constitute the largest volume of movement, investment, tourism and consumption at the same time. Moving to a new place opens up opportunities to operate hotels, transportation and commercial markets, which is of course a great benefit for the country that receives these visitors. .
Al-Hoor did not rule out the existence of negatives to the new system, but he stressed that they do not compare to the magnitude of the benefits and positives that will be achieved as a result of the new system, and he warned of the possibility of security challenges for the Gulf countries to control matters with regard to preventing the spread of organized crime, money laundering, drugs, etc., indicating that this should be accompanied by legislation and governing regulations to ensure the success of the system. New system.
The Doha Summit ratifies the decisions of the Interior Ministers at their meeting on November 8 and stresses the importance of strengthening joint security work
• The leaders welcomed the efforts of the Interior Ministers Committee regarding the unified Gulf visa, approving what was reached, and authorizing the Interior Ministers to take the necessary measures for implementation. pic.twitter.com/OJkofOos24
– Kuwait News (@KuwaitNews) December 5, 2023
Implementation controls
Al-Hoor added that the most prominent advantages of the new system are the ease of movement of people, which results in a potential increase in tourism activities in all countries of the region, thus providing many economic benefits and increasing cooperation between the GCC countries.
The economic expert explained that the new system requires focusing on implementation controls to ensure data privacy throughout the GCC countries, stressing that how to implement it requires full coordination between countries to ensure the protection of the local systems and laws of each country and ensure the possibility of any country setting additional conditions.
