UAE to open electronic visa center in Beirut

The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will soon open an electronic visa issuance center in Beirut, the state-run Emirates News Agency (WAM) announced Tuesday.

According to the statement, this initiative “is part of the Authority’s efforts to transfer the UAE government’s pioneering experience and proactive approach in modernizing public services, digitizing procedures, and reducing bureaucracy.”

Authority director Suhail Saeed al-Khayli noted that the Beirut center will join 18 other modernized centers across the globe.

It “aims to streamline and shorten the path for applicants, allowing them to carry out all the steps necessary to obtain a visa from their own country, without traveling or going through multiple stages, thus helping to facilitate procedures, reduce processing times, and improve user satisfaction.”

Until now, Lebanese citizens were required to apply for their visas online or through a licensed travel agency.

The UAE had closed its embassy in Lebanon in 2021 due to political tensions with Beirut, before announcing it would reopen in January 2025.

On May 4, 2025, Abu Dhabi also lifted its travel ban to Lebanon. In 2021, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Kuwait withdrew their diplomats following controversial statements by former Information Minister Georges Qordahi about Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen against the Houthis, and to express their objection to Hezbollah’s influence on Lebanese politics.

Tensions eased with the election of President Joseph Aoun in January 2025 and the formation of Nawaf Salam’s government the following month, both of whom pledged to disarm a weakened Hezbollah after the conflict with Israel from October 2023 to November 2024.

Aoun and Salam have since traveled to Abu Dhabi in April and May, respectively.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, attending the World Government Summit in Dubai, stated that he "would not allow" Lebanon to be "dragged into a new adventure," amid ongoing tensions between Iran, Hezbollah’s regional backer, and the United States.