Iran to Offer Free Visas Upon Arrival for Qatar’s 2022 FIFA World Cup Spectators
Iran announced that it has waived visa fees for foreign nationals visiting Qatar during the World Cup 2022.
Iranian Government Spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said that issuing free-of-charge visas for World Cup visitors will be in line with agreements reached with Qatar during a trip to Doha last month by Iranian President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi.
“This (Cabinet) bill can have an effective role in attracting and encouraging World Cup visitors to travel to Iran and to boost the country’s tourism industry,” he wrote on his Twitter page on Wednesday”.
The Iranian foreign ministry had said earlier this week that the new visa scheme would apply to all World Cup visitors except nationals of the US, Britain, and Canada as well as Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Somalia, and Sri Lanka.
The report said that visas issued under the scheme will be valid for two months and 20-day stays and visitors will be able to apply for one, two, or multiple entries.
Iran has been working closely with Qatar to help the country in its preparations to host the World Cup from November 21 to December 18.
Authorities say the Southern Iranian island of Kish could be a major destination for World Cup visitors seeking to travel to Iran.
This development comes following Qatari Transport Minister Jassim bin Saif al-Sulaiti’s visit to Iran’s Kish island where he signed six cooperation agreements on Sunday and Monday. Kish Island is a 92 square kilometer (35 square miles) resort island with white sand beaches. It is a 40-minute flight or six-hour boat ride from the capital of Qatar.
2022 FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup 2022 for the very first time the event is coming to the Middle East region with Qatar being the first gulf nation to host it.
The decision to host FIFA World Cup 2022 was part of FIFA’s pledge to stage at least one major international tournament in the region before 2030. While the Qatar 2022 tournament faced a lot of objections, FIFA still decided to go ahead with the tournament in the Middle Eastern nation.
FIFA World Cup: Qatar 2022 tournament to be played in the winter
Qatar was chosen by FIFA over rival bids from Australia, Japan, South Korea, and the USA during the final vote in 2010. While the FIFA World Cup is usually played in summer the Qatar 2022 event will be played in winter. The main reason behind the decision was soaring summer temperatures in the country.
Excessive heat in Qatar, with average temperatures at the end of April reaching around 92 F (33 C) was the reason behind the decision. The winter temperatures in Qatar, and specifically in the Doha region, average between 70-77F (21-25 C), compared to over 100 F (37 C) in the region’s summer.
FIFA World Cup 2022 groups
Group A: Qatar (hosts), Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Group B: England, Iran, United States, Wales/Scotland/Ukraine
Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
Group D: France, Peru/Australia/UAE, Denmark, Tunisia
Group E: Spain, Costa Rica/New Zealand, Germany, Japan
Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea
FIFA World Cup 2022 fixtures
The tournament kicks off on Monday, November 21, and will be wrapped up in less than a month with the final tabbed for Sunday, December 18. The Group stage of the FIFA World Cup will be played between November 21 to December 2.
Following the completion of the Group stage, the Round of 16 clashes will be played from December 3-6.
The Quarterfinals stage of the tournament will be played from December 9-10. The Semifinal matches will be played on December 13-14, while the third-place match and Final will be played on December 17 and December 18 respectively.
2022 World Cup Schedule Qatar