Maldives and Azerbaijan expand visa-free entry to include ordinary passport holders

The Maldives and Azerbaijan signed a new visa waiver agreement on Thursday, allowing citizens of both countries, even those who hold ordinary passports, up to three months of visa-free travel.

Maldives and Azerbaijan had signed a similar visa waiver agreement last year. However, it had applied only to people who hold diplomatic and official passports.

The new agreement on the mutual exemption of visa requirements was signed by Maldivian Foreign Minister Dr. Abdulla Khaleel and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jayhun Bayramov ahead of a meeting on Thursday, on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly underway in New York.

According to the Maldivian Foreign Ministry, the agreement grants visa-free entry for holders of ordinary passports from both countries for a period of 90 days.

It builds on the already existing unilateral visa-free regimes between the two countries.

Azerbaijan, a landlocked country which spans Asia and Europe, is a key emerging market for Maldivian tourism.

Maldives and Azerbaijan launched direct flights in November last year, with Azerbaijan Airlines operating biweekly flights between Baku and Male’ on a Boeing 737 Dreamliner.