As of August 1, vaccinated foreign visitors with tourist visas may now visit Saudi Arabia. The U.S., Saudi Arabia, and many other countries have made some recent changes to their masking, vaccination, and travel procedures related to COVID-19 and its variants, so the U.S.-Saudi Business Council has collected and compiled all the relevant information travelers to Saudi Arabia should know before planning their trip. It is highly recommended that all paperwork and other requirements for your trip are completed at least 1-2 weeks in advance:
– All travelers to Saudi Arabia, including Saudi citizens, must submit a certified negative PCR test result (PCR or antigen) within 48 hours of their departure to the Kingdom, regardless of immunization status (keep a hard copy as well)
- To locate qualified testing centers in the Kingdom, click here.
– Saudi Arabia requires upon arrival that international passengers show proof of full vaccination (considered 14 days after full dosage received), via vaccine passports/cards, for COVID-19 with one of the following vaccines:
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- 2 doses of Pfizer BioNTech
- 2 doses of Oxford AstraZeneca
- 2 doses of Moderna
- 1 dose of Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen
- Note: Saudi citizens will soon be required to have the vaccine booster dose in order to travel internationally.
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– Complete registration of vaccine on the Muqeem portal before arriving to Saudi Arabia and keeping a printed copy of the confirmation. We strongly recommend that you complete this step right after your Saudi VISA is issued to allow enough time for troubleshooting if needed (Saudi VISA number is required for this step).
– Bring proof of health insurance: foreign visitors who come to Saudi Arabia are required to have health insurance coverage in the case that medical services are required for a COVID-19 infection.
– Filling out the following Ministry of Health Disclaimer on the same date of arrival to Saudi Arabia (it will also be provided to you by the airline before landing): https://ussaudi.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Saudi-Ministry-of-Health-Disclaimer.pdf
– Downloading the Tawakkalna app before arriving to Saudi Arabia, and upon landing, activating it while following airport staff instructions.
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- Make sure the app will not require you to be in quarantine. If that is the case, alert the passport check-in desks before moving to the custom clearance area. Once you leave the airport, it will be difficult to change the status on the app.
- For the app to work properly, your phone must be connected to the internet and have GPS enabled at all times (not only when the app is used).
- The app will require you to identify the location of your stay in Saudi Arabia when you first activate it. You can only change this location once every 24 hours.
- Download the app for IOS
- Download the app for Android
- User manual for the Tawakkalna app for your reference: https://ussaudi.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Tawakkalna-English-compressed.pdf (Check page 8 for registration steps)
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– Familiarize yourself with all travel regulations through the guidelines published by GACA: https://ussaudi.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GACA-Guidlines.pdf. English version is from page 22 onwards.
Masking Procedures: masks must be worn in all buildings open to the public: malls, banks, restaurants, government buildings, etc.
Note about Tawakkalna: Tawakkalna is an app run by the Ministry of Health which stores and shows your vaccination status, whether you have been infected, and whether you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19. The vaccination/infection status on your Tawakkalna app must be displayed for any public place you enter (such as those listed above). Your status must be “green,” meaning that you are vaccinated and/or not exposed/infected with COVID-19.
Quarantine Procedures: while in quarantine, the Tawakkalna app must stay connected to the internet and have location services running at all times in the background to ensure that you comply with quarantine rules. If you are vaccinated but did not have the documents listed above uploaded in advance, then quarantine will last until those documents are uploaded (can take 3-5 days) and your vaccination status is confirmed. Quarantine may also last until your negative COVID-19 test results are processed, which can also take 3-5 days.
GACA applies all precautionary measures at airports across Saudi Arabia with the aim of providing an integral safe environment for visitors. GACA has also opened 24/7 communication channels in the Passenger Care Center at the following toll-free number: (800116888).
With the resumption of international flights into the Kingdom, the Council is available to facilitate every step of the visa process for members and non-members. Learn about our member sponsorship letters, 2-day turnaround for expedited visa processing, and other services HERE.
