MVR 283 million due as visa fees for this year: Immigration Department

Controller of Immigration Dr Mohamed Ali has said that last year’s statistics show that 111,000 foreigners are registered in the Maldives, and that MVR 283 million is remain due as visa fees for this year.

Dr Mohamed Ali said this while speaking at the ceremony held today to open the Foreigners’ Shelter, built to provide housing for illegal labourers in the Maldives.

He said that statistics show that MVR 171 million had been received as visa fees from 57,000 foreigners, but 54,000 registered foreigners have not paid their visa fees.

He said that visa fees were also due from the 40,000 illegal foreigners who remain unregistered.

Dr Mohamed Ali said that while such a large sum remains unpaid as visa fees, $510 million had gone out of the country. He said that over the past four years, the number of foreigners coming into the country had increased by 17 percent every year, which means that the amount of dollars leaving the country in 2022 would reach $2.3 billion.