Saudi Arabia ETA

The Saudi Arabia ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization) is a digital entry permission issued by the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs through its national visa platform at ksavisa.sa. It launched on 1 July 2026 for British passport holders and is linked electronically to your passport — no embassy visit, no interview and no visa sticker. It covers tourism, business, short-term study and medical treatment, and is applied for entirely online before you travel.

The Saudi Arabia ETA is open to all categories of British passport holders, and as of August 2026 it is the only nationality the scheme covers. If you hold a non-UK passport, the route for you is the Saudi Arabia Tourist eVisa, which is open to a far wider range of nationalities and includes health insurance.

The Saudi Arabia ETA is valid for 730 days — two years — from the date it is issued, and allows multiple entries during that period. Your permitted stay is 180 days in total across the full two years, whether you use it in one long visit or spread it over many short ones. It is not 180 days per entry, so keep a running count if you travel to the Kingdom regularly.

No — our price is all-in: it already includes the Saudi government's ETA fee plus our service fee for preparing, checking and submitting your application, with no add-ons at checkout. One thing we will be straight about: Saudi Arabia does not publish the ETA fee on GOV.UK or on any readable page of its ksavisa.sa platform, and reported figures vary between operators. Whatever the government charges, your price does not change — we absorb the variance. Government fees for entry authorizations are generally non-refundable once submitted; our service fee is covered by our refund policy. Check the exact price when you start your application.

No — they are three separate products and all three are currently listed by the UK government. The ETA gives UK passport holders 730 days, multiple entries and 180 days of total stay, with no insurance included. The tourist e-Visa runs 365 days with 90 days of total stay, is tourism-only, and includes health insurance up to SAR 100,000. The older Electronic Visa Waiver (EVW) is single entry for up to 180 days and must be applied for at least 48 hours before your flight. GOV.UK still lists the EVW, so it has not been withdrawn — but the ETA is the route Saudi Arabia built for British passports and is the current recommended choice.

Yes — the Saudi Arabia ETA covers Umrah performed outside the Hajj season, alongside tourism, business, study and medical travel. Hajj is excluded: pilgrims travelling for Hajj must use the dedicated Hajj visa route, not an ETA. Note also the health rule that applies to pilgrims regardless of authorization — a meningococcal (ACWY) vaccination certificate is mandatory for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims, given at least 10 days before arrival. DoVisa handles the travel authorization only; we do not arrange pilgrimage travel, packages or services.

Yes. Every traveller needs their own Saudi Arabia ETA issued against their own passport, including infants and children. A parent or guardian completes the application on the child's behalf using the child's own UK passport details. There is no family or group authorization — you can add each traveller to a single order as you go.

Possibly. According to GOV.UK, you may need a separate transit visa if you pass through immigration control, if you arrive and depart on separate tickets, or if you have more than 12 hours between connecting flights. A short airside connection on a single through-ticket generally does not trigger this. Because it depends on your exact routing and ticketing, confirm with your airline before you fly — and remember an ETA is never issued on arrival, so anything you need must be arranged in advance.