Bahrain tourist visa: the three ways to get one

Bahrain does not issue a separate tourist visa product outside the eVisa system. In the eligibility form you pick "General Visit" as the purpose and "Tourism" as the detail, and the portal shows which visit visas your nationality can obtain. Nationals of countries on the online list apply themselves; those on the on-arrival list can also get the visa at the border.

Nationals on both the online and the on-arrival lists can choose either option. Nationalities on neither list cannot obtain a tourist visa directly and need a guarantor: the airline they fly with, their hotel in Bahrain, a Bahraini travel agent, a Bahraini company or a Bahraini citizen.

The fee for each visa type is displayed during the application and paid by credit card via the BBK gateway; the portal's public pages do not list amounts. A guarantor such as a hotel or travel agent may add its own charges.

The processing fee is not refunded after a refusal, and nothing is refunded if you hold a visa but are refused entry at the airport or causeway.

On evisa.gov.bh you answer the eligibility questions, open "See conditions" for the tourism visa offered to you, complete the CAPTCHA and the form, and upload a file in each requested document category. You pay the first payment by credit card and keep the reference number.

NPRA reviews the application and emails you, usually within 3 to 5 working days. After approval you complete the process under "Pay for Application" and print the visa from "Check your Visa". The visa is not stamped in your passport in advance, so carry the printout and use the same passport.

A visit visa can be extended after arrival. NPRA accepts extension requests at its main office on Exhibitions Avenue in Manama (Building One, ground floor) and at the Ministry of Interior service centre in Muharraq (Building 378, Sheikh Hamad Street, Complex 211). The eVisa portal also links to an online extension service on the Bahrain.bh government portal.

An extension fee is charged. The portal does not publish the amount or the maximum length of an extension, so check the conditions of your visa type and apply before your permitted stay ends.

NPRA does not refund the processing fee when an application is refused, and holding a visa does not guarantee entry: if an immigration officer refuses you at the border, no part of the fee is returned. After a refusal you may submit a new application; the refusal email tells you whether to contact NPRA or a Bahraini embassy.

Submitted applications cannot be edited. If NPRA finds wrong data or a missing attachment, it emails you, and you must open "Visa Data Correction" and fix only those items within 7 days of the notice, otherwise the application is cancelled. For any other mistake you have to request cancellation from the email address used in the application, quoting the visa reference number, and then apply again.