TEHRAN – Arrival in Iran has been facilitated for Armenians willing to visit the neighboring country in their own cars.

Based on the recent agreement that the Touring & Automobile Club of Iran inked with its Armenian counterpart, they agreed to facilitate land traffic with personal and commercial vehicles for passport holders of the landlocked country. 

The agreement relies on the Carnet de Passages en Douane, or CPD, which is the international customs document covering the temporary admission of motor vehicles.

Such assistance has previously been provided for Turkish and Iraqi drivers willing to visit the Islamic Republic. 

Pursuing a border-easing scheme, the Iranian government mulls abolishing visa requirements for passport holders from 68 countries. The country seeks to encourage overseas travelers, though available evidence suggests it will not be finalized shortly.

Asghar Shalbafian, the deputy tourism minister, says the visa waiver incentive will mostly be granted to neighboring countries as well as those considered emerging markets with considerable population and per capita income.

The tentative list includes Argentina, South Africa, Indonesia, Jordan, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ecuador, Algeria, UAE, Bahrain, Bolivia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Brazil, Belarus, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Paraguay, Peru, Tanzania, Tajikistan, Thailand, and Turkmenistan.

Tunisia, Czech Republic, Russia, Romania, Japan, Ivory Coast, Singapore, Senegal, Sudan, Seychelles, Chile, Serbia, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Finland, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Cameroon, Croatia, South Korea, Colombia, Comoros, Kuwait, Guinea, Poland, Luxembourg, Libya, Lithuania, Malaysia, Maldives, Hungary, Macedonia, Mexico, Mauritius, Mali, Madagascar, Niger, Vietnam, Yemen, Greece, and India constitute other states whose nationals may be granted visa-free access.

According to available data, foreign arrivals to Iran during the first seven months of the current Iranian year (started March 21) were up 40% compared to the same period last year, the deputy tourism minister said. “In the first seven months of this year, the arrival of overseas tourists to the country increased by 40% compared to the same period last year,” Ali- said.

The number of tourist arrivals is estimated to reach six million by the end of the current year (March 19, 2024), Shalbafian said last month. “With the [steady] increase in the arrival of foreign tourists, it is expected that the number of international arrivals will reach about 6 million by year-end.”

AFM