Visa policy of Azerbaijan

Visitors to Azerbaijan must obtain a visa from one of the Azerbaijani diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa-exempt countries, countries eligible for visas on arrival or countries eligible for electronic visas. Visitors must hold passports that are valid for at least 3 months beyond the intended period of stay.

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A pair of Azerbaijani entry (right) and exit (left) stamps in a British passport

Visa policy map
Visa policy of Azerbaijan for ordinary passport holders
  Republic of Azerbaijan
  Visa exempt
  Visa on arrival or electronic visa
  Electronic visa
  Physical visa required
  Admission refused

General visa requirements
A visa for Azerbaijan issued in Tehran, Iran

The applicant's passport must be valid for at least 3 months longer than the expected validity period of the visa applied for.[1] If there are less than 3 months left on the applicant's passport before expiry, a visa will not be granted.[2]

All entrants who plan to stay for more than 15 days are required to register their location with the State Migration Service upon arrival (except citizens of Kazakhstan, who are only required to register if they intend to stay more than 30 days).[3]

Visa exemption

Citizens of the following countries can visit Azerbaijan without a visa for up to 90 days, unless otherwise noted:[4][5]

ID – May enter with an ID card in lieu of a passport.

Azerbaijan agreed to a mutual visa waiver with Serbia on 1 February 2022.[8] However, this has not yet gone into effect.[4]

Non-ordinary passports
Visa policy of Azerbaijan for holders of diplomatic or service category passports
  Azerbaijan
  Diplomatic and (Official or Service or Special) passports
  Diplomatic passports
  Visa-free status temporarily suspended
  Admission refused

Holders of the following non-ordinary passports are also eligible for visa-free entry for 90 days unless otherwise noted: [4][5][11]

D — diplomatic passports

O — official passports
S — service passports
Sp — special passports

  1. 30 days
  2. 14 days
  3. Temporarily suspended

Obtaining a visa

Visa on arrival
See also: Travel visa § On-arrival visas

Citizens of the following countries can obtain an electronic visa on arrival to Azerbaijan, valid for a maximum stay of 30 days. The visa is obtainable at any international airport.[12][13]

The cost of a visa on arrival is US$30. Holders of Japanese passports can obtain a visa on arrival free of charge.[14]

Conditional visa on arrival

Travellers with a residence visa issued by the United Arab Emirates can obtain a 30-day tourist visa upon arrival in Azerbaijan. They must present their valid visa or residence permit along with their passport.[15]

Azerbaijan opens visa on arrival facilities to air travellers of all nationalities when the country hosts international events. For example, all air travellers could apply for a visa on arrival between 1 April and 15 May 2023 if travelling in connection with the 2023 Formula One World Championship. Travellers had to present either a ticket to the event or an accreditation card issued by the Baku City Circuit Operations Company or an organisation affiliated with Formula One.[16]

Travellers to the 2023 International Astronautical Conference in Baku could also receive a visa on arrival between 20 September and 7 October 2023 if they provided a confirmation of their registration for the event. This visa was available at a reduced cost of $20. [17]

Citizens of the United States could obtain a visa on arrival, valid for 30 days, in Azerbaijan if arriving on a direct Azerbaijan Airlines flight from New York City.[12][18] However, this route was cancelled in 2019,[19] so U.S. citizens can no longer receive a visa on arrival unless they meet another condition.


Electronic visa
A photo of an Azeri e-visa issued to a British passport holder

Azerbaijan introduced electronic visas for citizens of designated countries in January 2017. The system is known as the ASAN viza and visas are issued for a single-entry visit of up to 30 days.[20] Electronic visas should be printed and presented together with the visitor's passport (which must be valid for at least three months beyond the expiry date of the visa) at the border checkpoint.[21]

There are two types of e-visa application: the standard application, costing US$20 and taking up to three working days, as well as the urgent application, costing US$55 and being processed within three hours.[22] In addition to the visa fee, applicants must pay a US$5 service fee.[23]

Nationals of the following countries and territories are eligible to apply for an electronic visa:[24]

In 2017, British travel magazine Wanderlust rated Azerbaijan's electronic visa as the easiest visa to obtain in the world.[25]

Travellers who are eligible for an unconditional visa on arrival can choose to obtain an electronic visa on arrival at Heydar Aliyev International Airport.[26]

There are plans to expand the ASAN system to issue electronic visas for Azerbaijani citizens travelling abroad. As of January 2018, Morocco was selected, and negotiations were also underway with Lithuania and the United Arab Emirates.[27]

Standard process

If a traveler does not meet the citizenship requirements for a visa exemption, visa on arrival, or electronic visa or wishes to work or study, they must apply for a visa with their nearest Azerbaijani diplomatic mission.[28] Visitors may apply by mail or appointment, and the application form may be filled out online.[1] Single-entry and transit visas cost US$20 and multiple-entry visas cost US$250.[29]

When applying for a visa, the applicant must present the following:[1][30]

  • A completed application form
  • A valid travel document and a photocopy of its information page
  • Two color, passport-regulation photographs
  • Proof of legal status in the country of application, if applying from a country other than one's own
  • Payment for visa application fees (by certified check)

Invitation

In addition, for all visas except transit visas, the applicant must present a valid invitation.[30][31] The required invitational documents differ depending on the type of visa applied for. For tourist visas, the applicant must provide proof of a hotel booking within Azerbaijan and confirmed flights in and out of the country.[1] For private visit visas, the applicant's host in Azerbaijan must provide a notarized copy of both their identity card and an invitation letter.[32] For all other visa types, they must receive permission from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before applying for a visa.[1]

To obtain permission, the inviting party in Azerbaijan must file the following documents in person at the MFA office in Baku:[33]

  • A completed application form (available online)
  • A letter from the inviting person or organization stating the purpose of the visa sought after, the length of the invitation, the number of required entries, and the diplomatic mission that the invitee will apply for a visa from
  • A copy of the passport of the invitee
  • Proof of payment of the ₼4 application fee, paid through a bank or online

If a legal representative submits the documents, they must also provide proof of the power of attorney and a copy of their identity card. If the inviting party is an individual, they must also present a copy of their tax number registration letter and proof of address.[33]

Visa facilitation

In 2013, Azerbaijan concluded a visa facilitation agreement with the European Union (excluding Denmark and Ireland) which reduces the number of documents sufficient for justifying the purpose of the trip, envisages issuance of multiple-entry visas, limits the length of processing and reduces the issuing fee or waives it entirely for many categories of EU citizens.[34]

Entry restrictions

Due to a state of war with the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh,[35] Azerbaijan denies entry and transit to Armenian and Artsakh nationals, as well as citizens of any other country who are of Armenian descent.[36][37][38] There have been exceptions, most notably for Armenia's participation at the 2015 European Games held in Baku.[39]

The government of Azerbaijan strictly bans the entry and transit of foreign citizens to and through Nagorno-Karabakh (the de facto Republic of Artsakh) and the exclaves of Karki, Yuxarı Əskipara, Barxudarlı and Sofulu, which are de jure part of Azerbaijan but under control of Armenia, without prior consent of the Government of Azerbaijan. Foreign citizens who enter these territories without permission are subject to being refused entry and transit to Azerbaijan and being included in the "list of persona non grata". The same policy applied to the Armenian-occupied territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh until they returned to Azerbaijani control as a result of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.[40]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the issuance of electronic visas and visas on arrival was suspended.[41]

Visitor statistics
YearVisitors[42][43]
1992—2001
No data
2002
Increase 576,000
2003
Increase 768,000
2004
Increase 989,000
2005
Decrease 693,000
2006
Increase 682,000
2007
Increase 732,000
2008
Increase 1,043,000
2009
Decrease 1,005,000
2010
Increase 1,280,000
2011
Increase 1,562,000
2012
Increase 1,986,000
2013
Increase 2,130,000
2014
Increase 2,160,000
2015
Decrease 1,922,000
2016
Increase 2,044,000
2017
Increase 2,454,000
2018
Increase 2,635,000
2019
Increase 3,170,000
2020
Decrease 796,000
2021
Decrease 792,000
Total (2002—2021)29,418,000

By country
Nationality[43]20212020
 RussiaIncrease 258,315225,201
 TurkeyIncrease 197,907160,504
 IranIncrease 125,35872,783
 GeorgiaDecrease 62,666184,228
 UkraineIncrease 17,42816,953
 UAEIncrease 17,3207,951
 United KingdomIncrease 9,4287,051
 Saudi ArabiaDecrease 8,83411,945
 KazakhstanDecrease 6,9288,498
 IsraelIncrease 6,6554,238
 GermanyIncrease 5,9223,531
 BelarusDecrease 5,7306,036
 IndiaDecrease 5,11712,731
 USAIncrease 4,4092,604
 UzbekistanDecrease 4,2135,283
 ItalyIncrease 3,4982,820
 PolandIncrease 3,3311,198
 PakistanDecrease 3,2248,752
 IraqDecrease 3,2126,119
 JapanIncrease 3,0812,201
 TurkmenistanDecrease 2,7388,257
 FranceDecrease 2,2781,506
 ChinaIncrease 1,7811,532
 South KoreaDecrease 413681
United Nations Other countries
and Statelessness		Decrease 27,121167,284
TotalDecrease 791,751795,722

See also
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Azerbaijan.

References
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