Visas and Landing Cards

Most Europeans can get Visas on entry as can others e.g. Australians and Americans. Visa information will be updated on this site as it changes.

The standard visa is a tourist visa which is fine for businessmen, and gives you 3 months. It costs 5,500 yemeni riyals – about $25 US.

You will need to complete a blue landing card which you should get on the plane before arriving. (If you are a regular visitor into Sana’a, make sure to get a handful for subsequent visits as sometimes the plane you are arriving on doesnt have any.) This will save you time completing the card in the immigrations hall.

Top Tip: on the bus that takes you to the immigrations area, keep on the left side of it, the drivers side, near the centre door. This will see you get out of the bus first and can get to the head of the line for visas. This is useful if you have arrived along with a load of tourists with no visas.

For the landing card, make sure you have details on where you are staying and also a contact number. Any other documentation supporting your reasons for being in Yemen would be useful.

At the visa desk, handover your passport and the 5,500 riyals. If you dont have any Yemeni riyals, there is an exchange counter next to the Visa desk and also an ATM. However, if you can, get riyals before you arrive. Maybe even try and do an exchange on the plane with a passenger…it is about 200 riyals to $1 US. Offer someone $30 dollars for the 5,500 yemeni riyals.

You should have no problems getting the Visa as long as you have no current or expired Israeli stamps etc.

Once you have the Visa, go to the immigration desk. Handover your passport and the entry card. Once in, you will enter the baggage reclaim. You may have your handbaggage scanned on the way into the baggage reclaim.

Baggage Reclaim

In the baggage reclaim there are guys who will get your bags and carry them out of the airport for you. This service costs about 200 yemeni riyals. Its worth doing and helps the locals. You may get stopped to have a baggage search. Sometimes this a reason for the immigration guy to get some ‘bakshish’. I have had a DVD cost me 1000 riyals. This is Qat money for the official. If they search your bag, they may find something and want to take you to a side office. This can be a bit worrying but it is usually so they can do the bakshish transaction in private. This corruption is being stamped out by the authorities, but it could still happen.

Arrivals Hall and Leaving The Airport 

Once clear of baggage reclaim and any checks, you then enter the arrivals hall. For the first time visitor to Yemen, this can be very exciting. Seeing the massed ranks of Yemeni’s with their traditional ‘Jambiya’ daggers, skirts and a mouthful of Qat is a unique site. Enjoy it and feel the warmth of these wonderful people.

In the arrivals hall are car hire companies, hotel reps and ATMs.

Opposite the ATMs is the Taxi Raha office. Taxi Raha is recognisable because they are ‘yellow’. If you aren’t being collected, use Taxi Raha to get you to your destination. They are a very clean and organised taxi service. Most drivers speak quite good English if your Arabic is non-existent and rusty. A journey from the airport is a fixed price of 2000 yemeni riyals – $10 US.

If there is no taxi raha available use another taxi. It will be about the same price to get to your destination.