Travelling to Egypt? You’ll soon need to get a visa before you go

Canadian travellers to Egypt may need to do some extra planning before taking off, as a new tourist visa regulation is set to go into effect soon.

The Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa confirmed to Global News, on Tuesday, individual tourists arriving on international flights will no longer be able to purchase a tourist visa at the airport.

Individual tourists will now have to apply for single-entry tourist visas through the Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa or the Egyptian Consulate in Montreal*, at a cost of $40. But, this only applies to people travelling on their own. Tourists travelling in organized groups will still be able to get their tourist visa on arrival.

The new rule goes into effect on May 15.

The Canadian government is currently advising against all “non-essential travel” to Egypt, with the exception of some resort areas along the Red Sea coast and areas along the upper Nile between Luxor and Aswan.

The Dept. of Foreign Affairs states this is because of the “unpredictable” security situation in several parts of the county and ongoing political demonstrations.

Tourist numbers have slumped since 2010, with just 10 million tourists visiting Egypt last year compared to 14.7 million visitors four years earlier, Reuters reported.

According to Reuters, one security source suggested the new tourist visa requirement may be to limit the number of “Western human rights activists who have been highly critical of Egypt’s tough crackdown on Islamists and liberal activists.”

Another security source inferred the switch was spurred by security issues arising from Islamist activity in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and the need to take time evaluate people travelling to the company, Reuters reported.

Foreign Affairs recommends anyone travelling to Egypt to register with the Registration of Canadians Abroad service.

*CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly indicated there is an Egyptian Consulate in Toronto. This post has been updated accordingly.