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Is it possible to get Saudi Arabia transit visa in Dubai for overland crossing to Jordan? I plan to travel Africa by 4WD. The idea is to visit Iran first, take a ferry from Bandar Abbas to Emirates and then to cross Saudi Arabia to Jordan for further travel to Egypt. Some sources suggest that a transit KSA visa is possible, but I can't find any latest information. I am Australian and not a resident of any GCC state, the car is not registered there either.

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  • I've only heard of GCC nationals and GCC permanent residents managing it. See here on flyertalk for one such trip report. Maybe look at some of the references from that thread? – Gagravarr Mar 27 '16 at 21:30
  • Hi Gagravarr! I read this trip report already before posting here. As you mentioned this guy was a resident of Emirates, but I am not, so the report information is not relevant, but thanks for your message anyway! I spent lots of time searching the web, but could find nothing recent on this topict. Hope that someone on StackExchange can shed a ray of hope for me! :) – xperimenter Mar 29 '16 at 14:10
  • Besides the transit visas, it seems that the Kingdom is about to reintroduce tourist visas: travel.stackexchange.com/questions/72934 – hippietrail Jul 6 '16 at 1:57
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A transit visa is indeed possible (they are issued all the time to commercial vehicle drivers and third country nationals), but recently they have stopped issuing them for non-nationals - and issue them on a case-by-case basis.

By national I mean citizen of the destination country; for example an Egyptian national traveling by road from UAE to Egypt.

You'll need to have already obtained:

  1. Triptych/CDP for your vehicle.
  2. Visa for Jordan in advance if required. If you are eligible for non-visa entry, you may get a pass - but if you are eligible for visa on arrival you will still have to obtain a visa in advance.
  3. Permanent residency in the UAE OR visa free entry into the UAE; you must be deportable to the UAE.

I must warn you - due to the current political climate, if they see you have visited Iran you may get denied transit through Saudi.

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  • (+1) By "nationals", you mean nationals from another GCC country (or whatever it's called these days)? Surely, Saudi citizens don't need a visa to enter their own country, or do they? – Relaxed Jun 5 '16 at 11:20
  • Yes I mean nationals of the destination country. For example, an Egyptian national traveling from UAE to Egypt by road. GCC nationals enjoy visa free access across the GCC member states; and Saudi nationals do not need visas to enter Saudi (they don't even need passports, just their Saudi ID card is sufficient). – Burhan Khalid Jun 5 '16 at 11:22
  • Oh OK, might be worth editing your answer, it wasn't clear at all to me. – Relaxed Jun 5 '16 at 11:25
  • Thanks to your reply Burhan! I'm Australian, hence "non-national". I also planned to go arrive to UAE from Iran. All things considered my chances getting a KSA transit visa are probably close to zero. – xperimenter Jun 6 '16 at 13:59

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