Qatar grants citizens from 80 countries visa-free entry

By Ahmed Youssef al-Sayed Abdelrahim

DOHA, Qatar (AA) - Qatar will now allow nationals from 80 countries to enter without a visa, the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) announced Wednesday.

“With this decision, Qatar hopes to bring fresh diversity to the tourism sector,” Hassan al-Ibrahimi, the QTA’s chief development officer, said at a news conference in Doha.

“Countries that will now benefit from visa-free travel were selected according to certain criteria,” Ibrahimi added, noting that additional countries would be added to the list.

According to Mohamed Rashid al-Mazroui, passport director at Doha’s Hamad International Airport, citizens of exempted countries will no longer have to pay entrance fees when entering Qatar.

Mazroui said countries given visa-free status had been selected on the basis of “security and economic assessments” conducted by the Interior Ministry.

Under the new regulations, citizens of the 80 selected countries -- which include Turkey, Germany, Greece and Belgium -- will no longer be required to obtain prior entry visas.