Visa Rules Announced For Bahrain F1

10 Mar 2014

The Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs (NPRA) of Bahrain has made (or, issued)some clarifications on the visa process for the Formula 1 event to be held in April 2014. Passengers can use this visa only for entering into and departing the country between March 23^rd to April 6^th.

The Formula 1 (F1) visa is valid only for two weeks and it is a multiple re-entry visa. This visa will not have any physical confirmation on the passport. A letter of invitation or a printout of visa approval from the sponsor must be carried by the traveler.

Depending upon the GCC expat residence status and nationality, travelers can obtain the F1 visa pre-arranged through Nationality, Passports & Residence Affairs or through the internet (www.evisa.gov.bh).

F1 visa can also be obtained by passengers on arrival if they belong to any one of the following G37 group countries: Australia, Andorra, Austria, Brunei, Belgium, China, Canada, Denmark, France, Finland, Greece, Germany, Hong Kong SAR, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Spain, San Marino, Singapore, Switzerland, Sweden, Turkey, Thailand, USA, United Kingdom, Vatican City and South Korea.

Other nationalities who can attain a visa on arrival are Brazil, Cyprus, Chile, Hungary, Panama, South Africa, Taiwan, Venezuela, and India. These nationalities can also obtain F1 visa pre-arranged through the internet. To avoid discrepancies at the border, all the nationalities must make use of online services to get a visa prior to arrival through the internet.

All the travelers except from the above mentioned GCC expat residents and nationalities must have a sponsor to obtain a pre-arranged F1 visa. The sponsor can be either a Bahraini individual or a Bahraini commercial entity. F1 Prearranged visas can be obtained by the sponsor at the Nationality, Passports and Residence Affairs Headquarters Manama, Bahrain. NPRA is ready to encourage all the commercial entities from Bahrain who are involved with the Formula 1 event, whether for providing accommodation facilities or ticket sales.