Visa policy of Albania

Visitors to Albania must obtain a visa from one of the Albanian diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries or are qualified for visa-free entry.[1][2]

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Entry stamp of Albania

Entering with a passport is required. Citizens from certain countries or territories, however, are eligible for visa-free travel with only their ID cards in lieu of their passports.[3] Passports must be valid for at least 3 months from the date of arrival.[4]

The visa policy of Albania is based on the by Law Nr. 108/2013 “On foreign citizens”, amended and the Decision of the Council of Ministers Nr. 513/2013 “On criteria and procedures for entry, stay and treatment of foreign citizens”, amended.

The visa policy of Albania is similar to the visa policy of the Schengen Area. It grants 90-day visa-free entry to all Schengen Annex II nationalities, except for Dominica, East Timor, Grenada, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. It also grants visa-free entry to several additional countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan, China, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait and Turkey.

Visa policy map
Visa policy of Albania

Visa-free access

Holders of passports (or in certain cases ID cards) of the following 88 jurisdictions can enter Albania without a visa for a maximum stay of 90 days (unless otherwise noted):[5][1]

1 - may enter using a national ID card or Irish passport card.
2 - allowed to stay for 30 days without a visa. [6]
3 - citizens of these countries or territories staying for more than 90 days within 180 days are required to obtain a type "D" visa.
4 - countries whose citizens can enter without visas due to the "visa liberalization with the Schengen area".
5 - allowed to stay for 1 year without a visa.

Nationals of the following countries can enter without a visa for short-term stay, only with the passport document from 20 April 2022 to 31 December 2022, for tourist reasons:

Nationals of the following countries can enter without a visa for short-term stay, only with the passport document from 01 May 2022 to 30 September 2022, for tourist reasons:

Substitute visas

Any visitor who holds a valid, multiple entry and previously used visa issued by a Schengen area country, United States, or the United Kingdom can enter Albania without a visa for 90 days. Visa must have been used at least once before arrival to Albania. The visa exemption also applies to valid Green Card holders, holders of resident permits issued by a Schengen country, or holders of refugee and stateless travel documents issued by an EU or EFTA member state.[1]

Visitors of Albanian ethnicity do not require a visa to enter Albania for a maximum stay of 90 days within 180 days.

Recent and future changes

Non-ordinary passports

Additionally, holders of diplomatic or service passports from Algeria, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Mongolia, Morocco, Oman, Russia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and Vietnam and holders of diplomatic passports of Tunisia do not require a visa to visit Albania.

The visa waiver agreement for diplomatic and service passports was signed with the Philippines, but it has not yet entered into force. [7]

Reciprocity
Main article: Visa requirements for Albanian citizens

Albanian citizens can enter without a visa some of the countries whose citizens are granted visa-free access to Albania but require a visa for Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Brunei, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Mauritius (grants visa on arrival), Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, and Venezuela.

Visa application

Citizens of the countries requiring visas should apply at the following diplomatic missions of Albania (citizens of countries without an assigned embassy should contact the geographically nearest diplomatic mission):[8]

  • Abu Dhabi: Oman, Yemen
  • Ankara: Afghanistan, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
  • Beijing: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam
  • Brasilia: Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guyana, Haiti, Peru, Suriname
  • Bucharest: Liberia, Morocco, Palestine
  • Cairo: Cameroon, Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
  • Doha: Bahrain, Qatar
  • Istanbul: Afghanistan, Congo, Georgia, Guinea, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Zimbabwe
  • London: Belize, Fiji, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Maldives, São Tomé and Príncipe, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago
  • Madrid: Gibraltar, Peru
  • Moscow: Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
  • New York City: Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica
  • Paris: Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Morocco, Senegal
  • Riyadh: Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Yemen
  • Rome: Angola, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Ghana, Guyana, Mali, South Africa
  • Sofia: Cuba, North Korea
  • Tokyo: Fiji
  • Warsaw: Belarus

See also

Annotations
  1. The political status of Kosovo is disputed. Having unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008, it is formally recognised as an independent state by 97 UN member states (with another 15 recognising it at some point but then withdrawing recognition), while Serbia continues to claim it as part of its own sovereign territory.

References
  1. "Country information (visa section)". Timatic. International Air Transport Association (IATA) through Gulf Air. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  2. "US Department of State - Country Information for Albania - Entry Requirements".
  3. "Visa regime for foreign citizens" (PDF). Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Albania). Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  5. "Who can enter Albania without a Visa" (PDF).
  7. "DPA News".
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