A parliamentary member has submitted a motion to the parliament today calling for local authorities to issue pre-approved on-arrival visas to tourists visiting the Maldives.
MP for Mahchangoalhi South Constituency Ahmed Haitham submitted the motion.
In the motion, MP Haitham said right now Maldivian authorities are only issuing on-arrival visas to tourists and that many visitors have complained that guests are made to wait for a long time before the process is completed.
He said that relevant authorities have been unable to thus far solve the issue.
MP Haitham also noted that many visitors have had to cancel their travel plans after their on-arrival visa applications are rejected for various reasons and they have to bear great financial losses.
In his motion, the MP highlighted that in the past five years, 9.58 million visitors to the Maldives have required visas and that 9,940 visa applications were rejected in the same period.
MP Haitham stated that the visa application and approval process must be streamlined and that it was vital to introduce a 'Pre-approved on-arrival visa' or Electronic Travel Authorization services to tourists.
