Yemen business visa: who qualifies and which approvals are needed

The applicant must be a business person and must be a national of the country where the issuing Yemeni embassy or consulate is accredited. The application is submitted to the mission responsible for the place where the applicant lives, and a round-trip ticket is required.

Two approvals carry the file. First, a confirmation of your status as a business person issued by the competent authorities of your country and certified by the Yemeni embassy or consulate. Second, the approval of the Ministry of Industry and Trade or of the General Investment Authority in Yemen. The portal also asks for a scan of the application lodged with the mission, round-trip tickets, the passport data page (valid at least six months) and a health certificate from an official authority stating that you are free of infectious diseases.

The business visa costs USD 150. The portal states that, until an internationally accepted electronic payment method is in place, fees are paid in cash in US dollars, either at the Authority's main centre in Aden through your host in Yemen or through a Yemeni embassy or consulate.

After the data are entered on the portal and the fee is paid, the Immigration, Passports and Nationality Authority decides within 3–5 working days of receiving a complete file. The sticker is issued by the Yemeni mission. Validity starts on the date given in the application.

Foreign business people, bank and company managers, investors and traders who already hold a residence permit of at least nine months can obtain a multiple exit and re-entry visa (USD 300) from the Authority's branches. It requires a request from the company or authority in Yemen, a profession such as merchant, investor or commercial manager in the passport, a passport valid at least nine months and no entry or exit ban.