Visa Information

Important COVID-19 Information

  • Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, special restrictions and conditions may apply for immigration, visa on arrival and for entry/exit. Please consult the latest information provided by the relevant authorities prior to traveling.

  • Some international airlines have resumed their routes on a limited schedule. Special conditions and restrictions may apply. Please consult the latest information provided by your airline prior to traveling.

Notice:

  • Effective from 19th July 2020, as a preventive measure for COVID19, Health Protection Agency (HPA) mandates all locals and expatriate work permit holders (including dependents) arriving Maldives by sea and air must complete 14 days home quarantine.

  • Travelers who are arriving for a stay at a tourist resort or a liveaboard shall stay only at the resort or liveaboard vessel till departure.

  • Travellers who arrive in the Maldives except for tourists shall register for home quarantine through the “haalubelun” Web portal https://haalubelun.hpa.gov.mv, prior to starting travel to Maldives. If you have not registered in the web portal, you shall complete and collect quarantine document from health office at the port you arrive.

  • Travelers arriving for a short term work based visit (less than 14 days) shall obtain special permission from HPA. Request for permission has to be made by the concerned/liaised local agency.

  • The sample for the PCR test must be taken not more than 96 hours prior to the scheduled time of departure from the first port of embarkation en-route to the Maldives.

  • Children below one year old are exempt from the requirement of a COVID-19 test

  • lf the passenger makes a transit during the journey, the initial PCR test will be valid if the transit does not exceed 24 hours.

  • lf a passenger makes a transit exceeding 24 hours, the passenger must take a repeat PCR test within 96 hours prior to embarkation at the port of transit.

Pre-entry PCR certificate with negative test result, as an entry requirement for tourists and other short-term visitors traveling to Maldives

Effective from 10th September 2020, all tourists and other short-term visitors are required to have certificate of negative PCR test result for COVID-19, with the sample taken 72 hours prior to departure to Maldives, counting from the first port of embarkation en-route to the Maldives. As such, passengers entering to Maldives under Tourist Visa, Business Visa, Special Visa and ship crew arriving to sign-on are required to present the COVID-19 negative PCR test result. The PCR certificate should clearly show the name and address of the laboratory, the result and the date of sample taken. ......more

Health Declaration

In accordance to health requirements all travelers traveling to and from Maldives are required to submit a self-declarative health declaration within 24 hours prior their departure to Maldives. Submit the application (Click Here)

Entry to Maldives

All travelers are required to go through immigration clearance upon arrival.

Inbound passenger must satisfy the following basic entry requirements before they can be considered for entry into Republic of Maldives:

  • A passport or Travel Document with Machine Readable Zone (MRZ) with at least 6 months validity

  • A Pre-Paid hotel booking/accommodation

  • Sufficient funds to last for the intended period of stay in Maldives

  • Confirmed onward/return tickets to home country or a country of Resident (not applicable for valid Resident permit holders)

  • Entry facilities to their onward destinations, e.g. visas.

  • Completed Disembarkation/Embarkation Card approved by Maldives Immigration

  • Yellow Fever Vaccination Certificate, if applicable

Tourist visa is granted for all nationalities, on arrival to Maldives. This means, no prior visa is required to arrive to Maldives as a Tourist.

The maximum number of days granted on arrival would be 30 days unless agreed by any bilateral means or Treaty. The thirty days is not for the passenger to claim, but lies at the discretion of the Immigration to grant any number of days less than or equal to 30

The period of stay granted is shown on the endorsement given on the passport. Passengers are advised to check their passports for the arrival endorsement and take note of the number of days stay given.

All Passengers Entitle on Tourist visa are not permitted to engage in any form of business, occupation, profession or paid employment while in Maldives.

Categories like Social visitors, friends ,family visitors or media and business visitors, who are not considered as genuine Tourist are highly advice to acquire a Sponsorship prior to their arrivals (if applicable), in order to facilitate the flow of passage.

Leaving Maldives

As the Passenger leaves Maldives; the Embarkation Card portion will be retrieved.

All travellers are also reminded that it is a punishable offence to overstay in Maldives beyond the number of days given.

To enter Maldives no pre-arrival visa is required.

A thirty day free visa is issued on arrival for all Nationalities, provided the following conditions are met:

  • Should posses a valid passport and

  • Have a valid ticket to continue the journey out of Maldives and

  • Have enough funds to cover the expenses for duration of the stay in Maldives. (US$100 + $50 dollars per day) or a confirmation of reservation in a Tourist Resort or a Hotel

Caution: Full thirty day visa is not a right of the passenger to claim, but lies at the discretion of the Immigration to issue not more than thirty days and any period less than thirty days.

EMPLOYMENT IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED UNDER THIS CATEGORY.

Employment for foreigners in Maldives is allowed under the permission granted from the Permits and Foreign Employment Division (PFED) of Maldives Immigration MI.

MI issues a Work Visa (WV) based on Employment Approval (EA) issued by PFED. EA is a written statement granting permission for expatriates to work in the Maldives. It is the responsibility of the employee to confirm that EA is approved before arriving to Maldives for Employment.

To apply for an EA, the employer should have a Quota that is valid for 3 months.

The process of EA issuing consists of 3 stages; Online Preliminary Check, Verification and Approval. EA will be approved after completing the above 3 stages, along with the deposit payment.

The employee must arrive in Maldives for employment within 90 days from the date of issue of the EA. Even though the EA is issued to an employee, MI reserves the right to prohibit the employee from entering into Maldives, if he/she is on the screening hit list. The employer must pay WV of the employee and submit for WV within 15 days of arrival to the Maldives.

Categories for which EA is issued are as follows:

Commercial Category

Government Category

Domestic Category

Sponsorship

A foreigner maybe allowed to enter Maldives through the sponsorship program. The sponsor should fill and submit the related application form available at the Immigration.

The foreigner should not travel to Maldives under this program, until the sponsorship is approved. It is the responsibility of the foreigner to ensure that the sponsorship has been approved. Failing upon which the foreigner maybe refused entry.

A sponsor could be a local or a locally registered company.

Renewal of Tourist Visa

A Tourist visa maybe be renewed if the person concerned, applies to the Immigration before the expiration of the visa already granted. Before the extension, Immigration will re-asses the incumbents financial position for the stay period of the extension. An extension can only be applied through the Visa Extension Application Form, at the Head Office during official working hours. Extension if considered, would be granted to a duration not exceeding a total of 90 days. (including the days granted on arrival) A visa fee of Rufiyaa 750 will be charged, for the full extension or part thereof (30 days free + 60 days chargeable) No visa fee will be charged if the extension does not exceed 30 days, that is including the days granted on arrival. FOREIGNERS WHO STAY BEYOND THE APPROVED STAY, MAYBE DEPORTED.

Refusal of Entry

Any person arriving in Maldives maybe refused entry, if the Immigration officer during questioning or interviewing the passenger

  • Have reasonable grounds (not necessarily solid proof) that the person is carrying fraudulent travel documents.

  • Suspects the apparent intention to the possible disruption of harmony and unlawful activities.

  • Has strong anti-semantic religious or political views.

Caution: The right to refuse an entry lies at the discretion of the Immigration and not as a right to claim entry.

Removal from Maldives

Any person staying in Maldives could be removed from Maldives immediately if the person concerned is :

  • Found working on a Tourist Visa

  • Found participating in any unlawful activity or even the intention to participate or initiate an unlawful activity

  • Suspected of disrupting the religious or political harmony

  • Reported to have become a public nuisance

  • Found with expired stay permit

  • Found with expired Work Permit

The removal could be translated as deportation from Maldives until such time, the Immigration seems fit.