Oman medical visa: the Patient Visa and the Emergency Visa

The Patient Visa is described by ROP as an urgent visit to Oman for a person suffering from a medical problem or another emergency. The Emergency Visa covers a short visit in an emergency situation. Both are sponsored visas: a local sponsor in Oman, such as a hospital, a company or a relative, files the request.

These visas are built for urgent cases, not for planned treatment programmes. For a planned check-up or operation of a few days, travellers who can enter visa-free may use that route, and others can use a tourist or family visit visa if their nationality qualifies.

ROP lists no fee to enter Oman on the Patient Visa. The Emergency Visa costs OMR 15. Both allow a single entry and a stay of seven days.

The first extension of stay can be requested by the applicant and is the same length as the original visa; further extensions require a visit to a passports and civil status office. The Patient Visa must be used within 24 hours of issue and the Emergency Visa within one month. Overstaying is fined at OMR 10 per day.

The sponsor files the request on the ROP eVisa portal or, because ROP allows these visas to be submitted on arrival, at the border when the patient lands. The key document is a letter describing the reason for the emergency.

Because the Patient Visa expires 24 hours after issue, the sponsor should time the request to the flight. Entry remains at the discretion of the ROP officer at the port of entry.

Neither visa allows work, and both are short by design. A patient who needs a longer stay should ask the sponsor or the treating hospital about the right visa before the seven days run out.

Applicants must not hold another current Omani visa.