In most cases, a visa for a holiday or other tourist travel to Egypt can be obtained online. This is easier, cheaper and quicker than applying for a physical visa. Because of technical limitations in the Egypt visa system, travellers whose full first name exceeds 50 characters cannot apply for their visa online.

Online application Egypt visa

All citizens of the United Kingdom, Switzerland or a country in the European Union holding a passport of that country can, in most cases, easily and quickly apply online for an Egypt visa for tourist travel to Egypt. It is possible to apply for a single-entry visa or a multiple-entry visa online. As the name suggests, the single-entry visa can be used for a single trip, while the multiple-entry visa can be used for an unlimited number of trips to Egypt within the validity of the visa. Both visas have a validity of 180 days in total, and for both visas, each consecutive stay can last up to 30 days. Regardless of the chosen visa type, the same digital form can be used for the application.

Submitting the application

You can submit the online application at any given time. It is possible to submit an individual application or combine the application for multiple travellers in a group application. One condition for submitting a group application is that all travellers within the group live in the same country. The advantage to this is that certain details only have to be entered once, so you save time. You apply for the visa before departure. You can submit your application anywhere in the world, provided that you have a working internet connection. Furthermore, you can complete the application from your laptop, tablet or mobile phone. Keep in mind that all travellers must meet all the requirements of the Egypt visa before submitting the application. You have to meet all these requirements from the moment you submit the application to the moment of the actual trip to Egypt.

Entering the details in the application form

Completing the application form is done in three steps. First, you start by entering your contact details, and then you enter your travel details and passport details. After you have entered all the details for one traveller, if desired, you can add more travellers by clicking on the button “Add a traveller” at the bottom of the form. Enter all details accurately and pay extra attention when entering the passport details. The applicant is responsible for entering all information correctly.

Limitations in the Egypt visa system

If the full first name of yourself or another traveller exceeds 50 characters, it may not fit in the “All first names” entry field in the Egypt visa online application form. This is the full first name, written in full and correctly spelled, or the first name as it appears in the machine-readable part of the passport, found at the bottom of the information page of your passport. As a result, multiple names can be included.

All the first names have to be written in full, except if they are abbreviated both in the machine-readable part and at the top of the information page (next to the photograph).

Online application is possible for fellow travellers

Is your first name or that of one or more fellow travellers too long for the online application form? In that case, you cannot apply for the visa for these travellers online. It is only possible to apply online if your first name is under 50 characters long. Did you enter a first name or combination of first names that is too long under the section ‘all first names’ in the application form? In that case, you will receive an error notification and will not be able to continue with the application. This is true even for group applications. You will not be able to continue with the other travellers on the form until the traveller with the longer name is removed

Your visa is only valid if the application form is completed correctly and truthfully. Do not try to circumvent the error notification regarding the length of first names by spelling the name differently, for example. If a traveller’s first name does not fit in the form, the Egyptian Embassy should be contacted for a different visa type.

Verification of the documents for your application

When you submit your visa application for Egypt through e-Visa.ie, the required passport scan is checked by a visa specialist. If this reveals that you have entered your name differently than what appears in the machine-readable part of your passport, you will be contacted immediately. This way, it is still possible to correct any mistakes or cancel the application if your name turns out to be too long after all.

Please note: this news article about the visa for Egypt is more than one year old. It might contain outdated information and advice, and no rights can therefore be derived from this article. Are you going on a trip soon and do you wish to do know what rules currently apply? Read all about the up-to-date information about the visa for Egypt.