Ethiopia rolls out online visa service to India & 38 other countries

The government of Ethiopia has rolled out online entry visa applications and e-visas for nationals of 39 countries. According to Ethiopian Airlines, the policy was initiated by Ethiopian Immigration and Nationality Affairs. Although only South Africans in the entire African continent can avail these services, nationals of Kenya and Djibouti can, however, enter Ethiopia without a visa. Most of the countries that are eligible for e-visa are European countries, besides Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Israel, Kuwait, Mexico, North Korea, South Korea and the US during this initial phase. Only people seeking tourist visas can use this service. Mr Gebreyohannes Teklu, the Director Main Department for Immigration and Nationality Affairs, was quoted by News Agency of Nigeria as saying that foreign visitors to Ethiopia from countries earmarked for visa on arrival would avail this service. He said that in addition, they have put in place separate counters for processing the visas of tourists under electronic travel authorisation. Applicants will receive an email authorising them to travel to Ethiopia once they get approvals for their online applications. When they arrive in Ethiopia, their passports will be stamped with visas on arrival. The statement released to the press by the government said that this e-visa service was part of a new national measure to attract more tourists to Ethiopia. If you are looking to travel to Ethiopia, get in touch with Y-Axis, an immigration consultancy firm with high standing, to apply for a tourist visa.