Abu Dhabi: Emiratis have already started applying for an Electronic Visa Waiver (EVW) document, which allows them to visit the UK for up to six months without a visa, the British officials said in the capital on Wednesday.
Emiratis started applying online for the EVW on Tuesday, soon after the announcement was made, Matt Heath, Regional Director Middle East and Pakistan UK Visas and Immigration, told a press conference at the British Embassy.
The number of applicants was not readily available with him.
As Gulf News reported on Tuesday, the new visa waiver scheme will come into effect from January 1, 2014, for business travellers and tourists to visit the UK from UAE, Oman, Qatar.
The system will be extended to Kuwaiti citizens later in 2014, Dominic Jermey, the British Ambassador to the UAE, said on Wednesday.
The UK is the second most visited destination by residents of the UAE, with the number of visits doubling in the last 10 years. Visa applications from the UAE are growing year on year and the number of visas issued in 2012 from the UAE is 30,148, an increase of 43 per cent (from September 2012 to September 2013).
The introduction of the new service will allow Emiratis to apply for an EVW online and free of charge without having to go to a visa application centre or hand in passports prior to travel.
All they have to do is complete their EVW online at least 48 hours before departure and present a printed copy on departure and again on arrival in the UK.
The EVW is only valid for a single entry to the UK on the date and time specified. The biographical details on the EVW document must match exactly with the holder’s passport.
However, those who travel frequently, at short notice or may need to re-enter the UK as part of the same trip, are advised to apply for a multi-entry visit visa or long-term visa, which offers more flexibility and can last up to 10 years.
UAE passport holders wishing to work, study or visit the UK for longer than six months must obtain a visa and cannot travel on an EVW document.
