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Visa policy of Cuba

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Visitors to Cuba must obtain a visa before travel or a tourist card from one of the Cuban diplomatic missions, travel agencies or authorized airlines unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.[1]

All visitors, including those with Cuban nationality residing outside Cuba, must hold valid return tickets and proof of medical insurance. Non-Cuban passport holders must also provide proof of financial solvency of at least US$50 per day. Visitors from many countries are expected to hold a passport valid for at least two months from the arrival date.[1]

Visa policy map

Visa policy of Cuba

Cuban nationals

Persons who were born in Cuba must use their Cuban passports for travelling to Cuba, unless they have official documentation to prove that they no longer have Cuban nationality.[1]

Visa exemption

Citizens of the following 19 countries neither need a visa nor a tourist card to visit Cuba, for a stay up to the duration listed below:[1][2]

Indefinite stay

90 days

90 days within any 180 days

90 days within any 1 calendar year

60 days

30 days

28 days

Uncertain visa-free status

 Benin: According to the original visa agreement between Benin and Cuba, Beninese students who hold a normal passport may enter Cuba without a visa, for a maximum stay of 90 days.[2] However, this condition is not mentioned on Timatic, which states that all normal passport holders of Benin can enter Cuba without a visa, for a maximum stay of 90 days.[1] It is not known if amendments to the agreement were subsequently made.[2]

Travelling on Duty

Citizens of the following countries who are holders of normal passports are exempt when travelling on duty:[1]

Diplomatic and Service passports

  Cuba
  Diplomatic and service category passports
  Diplomatic passports

Holders of diplomatic or various categories of service passports (official, service, special, public affairs) issued by the following countries are allowed to enter and remain in Cuba without a visa (allowed period of stay in brackets):[1][14]

D — diplomatic passports
O — official passports
S — service passports
Sp — special passports
PA — public affairs passports

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba, Armenia and Moldova are not applying bilateral agreements in practice.
Agreement with Indonesia signed on 26 March 2003 was applied from 17 March 2005 to 17 March 2015.

Visa-free agreement for holders of diplomatic and official passport was signed with  Pakistan in October 2019 and it is yet to be ratified.[15]

Future changes

Visa exemption agreements were signed with the following countries but are not yet ratified :

  •  Kazakhstan – 30 days within year period for ordinary passports[16]

Tourist card required

Cuban visa (tourist card) sample

Citizens of all other countries must purchase a Visa / Tourist Card (Visa - Tarjeta de Turista) before arrival, which can be acquired from Cuban missions, travel agencies, airlines, or licensed online retailers. A tourist card used to grant a maximum stay of 30 days (90 days for Canadian citizens), but this has been changed as of 1st of November, 2022 to 90 days for most nationalities. It can be extended once for the same period in Cuba.[1] Those who fly to Cuba from US airports must purchase a "Pink Tourist Card" which is mainly available in the US and fill an Affidavit form, airlines in the US will be able to provide more information about how to purchase the Pink Tourist Card. These Pink Tourist Cards are needed for everyone flying from the US to Cuba on a direct route. Those who enter Cuba from non-US airports must purchase a Green Tourist Card, which is often less expensive. You must also fill in an Advanced Passenger information form, within two days before you arrive in Cuba.

Visa required

Citizens of the following 20 countries are ineligible to obtain a tourist card and must obtain a Cuban visa:[1]

1 - nationals of other countries required tourist card travelling to Cuba from India also require a visa.[17]

However, they are eligible to travel to Cuba with a tourist card if they also hold a valid visa or permanent residence permit issued by Canada, the United States or an EU member state.[1]

Transit

Passengers in transit are exempt from visa or tourist card requirements if their transit time does not exceed 72 hours. They are allowed to enter Cuba.[1]

Kosovo

Entry and transit is refused to  Kosovo nationals, even if not leaving the aircraft and proceeding by the same flight.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d "Listado de acuerdos exención de visado | Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Cuba". cubaminrex.cu.
  3. ^ "PDF.js viewer". www.pravno-informacioni-sistem.rs.
  4. ^ Original visa agreement indicates that visa exemption for normal passport holders of Benin only applies to Beninese students; however this condition is not mentioned on Timatic, which states that all normal passport holders of Benin can enter Cuba without a visa. It is not known if amendments to the agreement were subsequently made.
  5. ^ Previous visa-free agreements under different terms were applied between 1981-1985 and 1985-1994 (as the Soviet Union until 1991). Amendments to the visa agreement have been in force since 21 December 2018.
  6. ^ "Error". www.eda.admin.ch.
  7. ^ Zaken, Ministerie van Buitenlandse. "Exchange of Notes between the Government of the Kingdom of Netherlands and the Government of Cuba concerning the abolition of visas". treatydatabase.overheid.nl.
  8. ^ "Was applied under visa exemption agreement from 1 January 1954" (PDF).
  9. ^ Was applied under visa exemption agreement from 17 March 1951. Exchange of Notes between the Government of the United Kingdom and the Government of Cuba for the Abolition of Visas
  10. ^ "Was applied under visa exemption agreement from 30 August 1978" (PDF).
  11. ^ "Was applied under visa exemption agreement from 5 December 1990" (PDF).
  12. ^ "Vyhláška 16/1979 Zb. O Dohode medzi vládou Československej socialistickej republiky a vládou Kubánskej republiky o bezvízovom styku úplné a aktuálne znenie".
  13. ^ Applies to students, fellows or persons in artistic, cultural, scientific, journalistic missions, or on an official mission.
  14. ^ "Listado de acuerdos exención de visado".
  15. ^ "Pakistan signs visa-free agreement with Cuba". Khaleej Times.
  16. ^ Kazakhstan, Cuba sign the agreement on visa-free trips
  17. ^ http://app.ivsource.com/app/img/forms/Tourist%20Visa%20Requirement.pdf [bare URL PDF]