Iraq tourist and visit visa: stay, fees and how to apply

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs groups tourism and private visits under one category. The tourist visa is meant for visiting tourist and archaeological sites: you may enter once within three months of the issue date and stay for one month. The visit visa used for religious occasions or for visits to the holy shrines allows one entry within one month of issue and a one-month stay.

Organised tourist groups do not apply one by one: the request is filed by a tour company in the mission's district, working with a tourism company licensed in Iraq. For individual travellers the simpler route today is the 30-day e-visa from evisa.iq.

Iraqi missions apply the same conditions to every visa: a passport valid for at least six months, a completed application form with two photos, enough means to cover your living costs in Iraq, a convincing reason for the trip that fits the visa type, and a full address in Iraq. A visa is refused if there is an objection on grounds of public health, security, public morals or the national economy, if you face charges or a conviction abroad for an extraditable offence, or if a deportation order has been issued against you.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs asks missions to fill in the address field in detail (district, alley, house number and a landmark) and to include a phone number, because incomplete addresses slow down the reply from Baghdad.

Each mission publishes its own fees. The Embassy in Washington charges USD 50 for single-entry, visit, transit and religious visas, accepts cash only, and lists a separate USD 150 one-year multiple-entry tourist visa reserved for US passport holders on the basis of reciprocity.

The older fee table still shown on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website (USD 30 for group religious visas, USD 40 for an individual visa) dates from 2010; rely on the amount your mission publishes.

Except for a few fee-exempt categories, an Iraqi mission cannot issue a visa on its own. The consul checks the form and passport, the file goes to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad, which asks the Ministry of Interior's Directorate of Residency Affairs for approval, and the answer, positive or negative, is sent back to the mission. Only then is the visa sticker issued, signed by the consul and stamped.

The Embassy in Washington tells applicants to allow 15 business days and contacts them once approval arrives; approved applicants usually receive a single-entry visa valid for three months, and in some cases a multiple-entry visa for six months or one year.

A tourist or visit visa does not allow work. If you hold a normal (ordinary) visa, which allows a stay of up to three months, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that you must report your arrival to the Residency Directorate within ten days of entering Iraq. An expired visa cannot be extended; a new approval and new fee are needed.