Maldives reopens for Indian tourists from 15 July: All you need to know about travelling to island nation

The island country of Maldives has announced that it will open its borders to South Asian countries including India from 15 July.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih announcing his government’s decision, added that the situation will be reviewed periodically between 1 and 15 July in the wake of the pandemic.

The island nation heavily relies on tourism for its economy and it comes as relief to many resorts and hotels across the country which rely on international travellers for their business. The latest travel update also comes as a huge relief for all the tourism stakeholders.

If you're looking to travel to the Maldives in the near future, here's all you need to know to plan your holiday.

Visa requirement

The Maldives gives a visa on arrival.  In order to enter the Maldives, Indian nationals visiting the country as a tourist do not require any pre-arrival visa, just a valid passport.

Some of the other visa requirements include:

• Passport must have at least 1-month validity from the date of your expected departure in the Maldives
• A confirmed pre-booking at a registered tourist facility is a prerequisite for the visa. Up until guesthouse tourist facilities are to be reopened at a later date, a booking is considered valid only for a tourist resort facility, liveaboards, and/or pre-approved transit facilities
• Tourist visa extensions will be made available for long-stay tourists without the imposition of any further fees

Any test/vaccine requirements?

As per a tweet from the Maldives tourism ministry, international passengers are required to carry a negative RT-PCR test, with the test taken within 96 hours from the scheduled time of departure.

#Maldives will restart issuing of on arrival tourist visa starting 15th July to tourists travelling from South Asia. Tourists need a negative #PCR result to enter Maldives. Further details will follow accordingly. #VisitMaldives@visitmaldives

— Ministry of Tourism (@MoTmv) June 29, 2021

Here are some other requirements:

Previous ban

The Maldives had imposed a temporary suspension of tourist visas for visitors travelling from South Asian countries, since 13 May. In addition to India, the countries included under this ban were Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

With inputs from agencies