Next up on our visa series, is how to get yourself a tourist visa for Uzbekistan. Depending on your nationality, the type of visa you need, where you apply for it, and how it can vary quite a bit.
We’ve put all the key information together on one page to help make your visa process pain-free.
Visa-free entry
If you are from a country in the list of the country found at the bottom of this webpage, you can now enter Uzbekistan visa-free and stay for a period of 30 days. This includes both entries at land borders as well as by the airport. That’s it, off you go! Go and enjoy Uzbekistan with YPT!
Land Borders
If sadly, you are not from one of those nationalities, you will need to organize your visa prior to the trip. Some nationalities don’t need an LOI (e.g. UK citizens getting the visa from the embassy in London), however, most do. Even if you have a UK passport, but are getting the visa elsewhere, you might need an LOI, depending on the embassy. In this case, we will arrange your LOI, which if you’re booking a tour with us, will be included in the tour price.
On Arrival at the Airport
It is possible to get your visa on arrival at the airport in Tashkent, however the counter there is just a guy with a printer and it sometimes can take a while (the maximum we’ve heard of is about four hours, but usually we’d be expecting around an hour), so if it is possible for you to get the visa at an embassy prior to the trip, we would recommend that. If you live in a country without an Uzbek embassy though (Australia for example) and aren’t traveling anywhere else beforehand, getting it at the airport is still an option.
Letter Of Invitation
It is stipulated on your LOI which embassy you will have the visa issued at, and this can’t be changed after the application is made. If you are a citizen of one of the countries with an Uzbek Embassy or happen to be passing through a country that has one, you can take your LOI directly to the embassy and organize your own visa at your own expense. For a list of all countries with Uzbek embassies visit . If you are not the citizen of or going to be passing through, one of these countries, we can speak directly with you about your options.
It is important that you get in touch with the individual embassy that you’ll be using as the information on the internet isn’t necessarily updated regularly, and each embassy can have their own requirements, prices and processing times which are subject to change.
E-Visa
In 2018, Uzbekistan has launched a new e-visa scheme which simplified the process to obtain a visa. Find out more about it in our dedicated guide about the e-visa.
Joining a YPT tour to Uzbekistan makes the visa process a whole lot easier. Click here to see our tours available.!
Caitlin Graham is a pioneer for all things Middle East having spent her final year of her Global Studies degree within the region. Her goal is to showcase the human side which is often misrepresented in media.
