Maldives Travel Guide
Visa summary
247 passport nationalities researched for entry into Maldives.
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Guide
The Maldives gives visitors a free 30 day visa on arrival, and then adds a departure tax and a nightly green tax. What you need is a passport, proof of onward or return travel, a confirmed and prepaid booking at a registered facility, sufficient funds, and the free Maldives Traveller Declaration, submitted electronically within 96 hours before you arrive. Guides say a passport should be valid for at least six months, while Wikipedia's summary gives one month, so check with your airline.
Entry and transit have been refused to citizens of Israel since 15 April 2025, described as a temporary measure over the Gaza conflict.
Then there are the costs. Foreign passengers pay a departure tax under the Airport Taxes and Fees Act that rose on 1 December 2024 to 50 dollars in economy, 120 in business, 240 in first, and 480 on a private charter, waived for children under two and for transit passengers who do not leave the airport. On top of that, a green tax of 12 dollars per person per night applies at resorts and 6 dollars at qualifying guesthouses with 50 rooms or fewer.
Border crossings
- Velana, the airport that is the whole border
Velana International Airport is where arrivals are processed. Have your Traveller Declaration, your booking details, and your onward ticket ready, and guides say immigration then typically takes minutes rather than an hour.
Transit routes
- Nothing alcoholic gets in, duty free included
Tourists cannot bring alcohol, pork products, pornography, firearms, or idols of worship. That applies even to duty free spirits bought at a departure or transit airport.
- Vapes are banned outright
Importing vapes and their accessories has been banned since 15 November 2024, and possessing or using them anywhere in the country has been banned for visitors and locals alike since 15 December 2024.
Entry point notes
- The declaration has a window
It must be completed within the 96 hours before arrival, so a form filled in a week ahead will not do.
- The visa is free, the departure tax is not
Budget for the departure tax for your travel class, and for the nightly green tax when you compare accommodation prices.
- Bring a booking that matches what you declared
Immigration looks for a prepaid, confirmed booking at a registered facility, so a vague plan to sort accommodation out on arrival is not enough.