Saudi Arabia’s increase in visa fees for travellers is expected to earn the country millions of riyals from pilgrims without dampening tourism figures, say travel industry experts.
The country’s new visa regime, which comes into effect on Sunday, does not affect pilgrims for Haj or Umrah travelling to the country for the first time.
But, as part of its effort to diversify non-oil income, subsequent religious visits and business travel will cost 2,000 Saudi riyals (Dh1,957) for a single-entry visa.
Religious tourists were previously exempt from all visa fees.
For all other travellers, entry visas will also cost more. For example, a multiple-entry visa now costs 3,000 Saudi riyals for six months, 5,000 Saudi riyals for a year and 8,000 Saudi riyals for two years. This compares with the 515 Saudi riyal multiple-entry visa previously charged to travellers from the UAE. The new visa regime was announced in August.
GCC nationals are excluded from all visa fees.
The new visa regime could bring in millions of riyals from the religious travellers alone.
“The recent visa fee hikes announced by Saudi Arabia will substantially increase the cost of travel to the kingdom for both pilgrims and other types of tourists such as business visitors and those visiting friends and relatives,” said Rashid Aboobacker, the associate director at TRI Consulting, a consultancy in Dubai, on Saturday.
Mr Aboobacker said the new fee structure will not dent religious tourism as first-time Haj and Umrah visitors are still exempt from charges.
“For most of the repeating Haj and Umrah pilgrims, particularly from within the region, a hike in visa fees may not be a major deterrent,” he said. “The substantial hike in the cost of entry visas may have a negative impact on business and [those visiting friends and relatives] as both companies and individual sponsors might now try to contain costs by limiting the number of trips and avoiding non-essential trips.”
Saudi Arabia received 1.32 million overseas Haj pilgrims, out of 1.86 million Haj pilgrims this year, according to the General Authority for Statistics in Saudi Arabia last month. Last year, Saudi Arabia received 18 million international visitors, down from 18.25 million in 2014, according to the United Nations’ World Tourism Organisation.
Travel agents agree that new visa charges will not affect religious tourism. “The price of a visa will never deter a traveller, especially religious travel, since if pilgrims have to do it, they do it,” said Saleem Mogral, the general manager of Dubai-based Al Majid Travel and Tourism, a unit of Juma Al Majid Group of companies. “We have not yet seen a drop in business travel to Saudi Arabia.”
The new visa regulations come as Saudi Arabia’s revenues have been hit by the low oil price.
Saudi banks continue to face liquidity pressures due to deposit outflows, a consequence of lower oil prices, according to credit rating agency Moody’s. Along with Fitch, it has downgraded ratings for Saudi Arabia.
Last week, the country’s central bank, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, said it will make about 20 billion Saudi riyals of time deposits in Saudi banks. Since the beginning of the year, the government has deposited 12bn Saudi riyals.
“Government deposits as of July were down 4.4 per cent from a year earlier because funds were needed to help finance its large fiscal deficit, which we estimate at around 12 per cent for 2016,” Moody’s said in a report on Thursday. “Private-sector deposits also declined and were down 2.6 per cent year on year as of July, adversely affected by government spending cuts and weakening economic growth.”
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
UAE - India ties
The UAE is India’s third-largest trade partner after the US and China
Annual bilateral trade between India and the UAE has crossed US$ 60 billion
The UAE is the fourth-largest exporter of crude oil for India
Indians comprise the largest community with 3.3 million residents in the UAE
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015
His visit on August 23-24 will be the third in four years
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016
Sheikh Mohamed was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2017
Modi will visit Bahrain on August 24-25
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
A%20QUIET%20PLACE
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
The%C2%A0specs%20
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ARSENAL IN 1977
Feb 05 Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland
Feb 12 Manchester City 1-0 Arsenal
Feb 15 Middlesbrough 3-0 Arsenal
Feb 19 Arsenal 2-3 West Ham
Feb 26 Middlesbrough 4-1 Arsenal (FA Cup)
Mar 01 Everton 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 05 Arsenal 1-4 ipswich
March 08 Arsenal 1-2 West Brom
Mar 12 QPR 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 23 Stoke 1-1 Arsenal
Apr 02 Arsenal 3-0 Leicester
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Places to go for free coffee
- Cherish Cafe Dubai, Dubai Investment Park, are giving away free coffees all day.
- La Terrace, Four Points by Sheraton Bur Dubai, are serving their first 50 guests one coffee and four bite-sized cakes
- Wild & The Moon will be giving away a free espresso with every purchase on International Coffee Day
- Orange Wheels welcome parents are to sit, relax and enjoy goodies at ‘Café O’ along with a free coffee
Company%20Profile
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EU's%2020-point%20migration%20plan
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SRI LANKS ODI SQUAD
Perera (capt), Mendis, Gunathilaka, de Silva, Nissanka, Shanaka, Bandara, Hasaranga, Udana, Dananjaya, Dickwella, Chameera, Mendis, Fernando, Sandakan, Karunaratne, Fernando, Fernando.
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How to get exposure to gold
Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.
A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.
Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.
Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.
London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long
However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
Racecard
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A Prayer Before Dawn
Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire
Starring: Joe Cole, Somluck Kamsing, Panya Yimmumphai
Three stars
Company%20Profile
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Company%20Profile
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
SPECS
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