Iraq launches single e-visa system, Kurdistan region included

BAGHDAD,— Iraq’s government has approved a unified nationwide electronic visa system that will apply to all visitors, including those entering through the Kurdistan Region, officials said Tuesday.

The office of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced in a statement that the Cabinet voted to establish a single federal platform for issuing entry visas.

The system will also link visa issuance with mandatory health insurance coverage for travelers.

According to the statement, the Kurdistan Regional Government will no longer issue visas separately.

Instead, the KRG will be required to process entry permits through the federal system, which will only accept applications accompanied by health insurance certificates.

All relevant ministries and the KRG Representation are barred from issuing visas without proof of insurance, the statement added.

Fees collected through the platform will go to Iraq’s Health Insurance Authority. That agency will also provide insurance certificates for groups not eligible under the e-visa system, according to the government.

A separate platform will handle health insurance documents for individuals outside the new framework.

The Interior Ministry announced in March that Iraq would begin providing electronic visas for travelers from a number of countries in place of visas on arrival.

Eligible nations include European Union members as well as Australia, Canada, China, France, Japan, New Zealand, Russia, South Korea, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The Kurdistan Region had launched its own e-visa service in February 2023 as part of efforts to encourage tourism and investment.

That system allowed foreign travelers to enter Erbil and other cities in the region but did not grant access to federal territory outside Kurdistan Region.

Currently, the KRG continues to run its own visa regime. Citizens of 53 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and European Union states, can obtain visas upon arrival at airports and border crossings in the Kurdish region. These visas, however, remain valid only within Kurdistan and do not allow entry into federal Iraq.

(With files from Agencies)