Iran to start issuing e-visa to Kurdistan tourists to facilitate travel

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Tourists from the Kurdistan Region seeking to visit Iran will soon be able to obtain their travel documents online, an Iranian diplomat announced on Tuesday.

“Tourism is excellent for both sides and will deepen bilateral ties. This is why we have made every effort to facilitate [travel] for tourists,” Murtaza Abadi, Iranian Consul-General to Erbil, was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.

As a first step, the official added, Iran would suspend issuing physical visas and replace them with electronic ones.

Individuals from the Kurdistan Region were previously required to pay a visit to Iranian consulate offices to apply for a visa, submitting documentation required for the process in person.

An e-Visa would serve as an alternative to this, with would-be travelers being able to apply online with electronic copies of the required identification papers, cutting down on processing times.

In order to avoid long queues and crowds at the border, especially during the Kurdish New Year, the Erbil consulate hopes to roll out the online system before March 21, Abadi asserted.

Many tourists from the Kurdistan Region travel to Iran yearly for tourism, especially to the Kurdish provinces, Tehran, and resort areas north of the country on the Caspian Sea.

In turn, many from Iran, among them the Kurds (Rojhilatis), flock to the Kurdistan Region to visit its various resorts across three provinces, especially, during the spring season.

Editing by Nadia Riva