Last updated
Iran's foreign ministry takes visa applications on its e-visa site, but travel from the UAE is hard to recommend now. The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to Iran, and Iranian airlines cannot fly to the UAE. We check the rule for your passport and the current advice first, then prepare the file if the trip makes sense. Iran decides every visa.
Read the advice before the visa
The UK Foreign Office page for Iran, last updated when we read it, says it advises against all travel to Iran. It warns that British and British-Iranian dual nationals are at significant risk of arrest, questioning or detention, that airspace and borders can close suddenly, and that no face-to-face consular help is possible in an emergency.
The UK is one government. Check what your own foreign ministry says. On the UAE ministry of foreign affairs announced a ban on UAE nationals travelling to Iran, Lebanon and Iraq and asked those already there to return. That notice names UAE nationals, not residents, but it shows where the UAE stands.
If this is a work trip or a family emergency, tell us. If it is a holiday, we will say plainly that waiting may be wiser.
Flights from the UAE
The UAE General Civil Aviation Authority suspended all flights by Iranian carriers to and from the UAE from , until further notice. It cited the US ban on Iranian airlines using airports abroad. Reports say Iran closed its airspace to UAE aircraft the same day. flydubai had restarted overflights of Iran only in August, and now reroutes. Gulf News covered the effect on residents on .
In practice, ask any airline for a written answer on whether it can carry you to Iran, and by which route, before you pay for a visa.
How Iran's e-visa works
Iran's e-visa site is run by its Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The steps it describes:
- Open the online form. Answers must be in English letters, so write Sao Paulo, not accented spellings.
- Have your passport, a digital photo, a digital image of the passport's first page and any itinerary ready. A CV can be asked for.
- Choose the embassy or consulate where you plan to receive the visa.
- Submit, then verify your e-mail with the code. If you do not do this within 3 days, the application expires.
- Print the confirmation page and keep the tracking code. Iran says to wait up to 10 business days. Some applicants must attend an interview, others do not.
A consular officer decides what type of visa you get. The listed types include tourist (B), pilgrimage (C, for Muslims), temporary work (F), transit (G) and medical (T). A tourist visa lists the application and a possible consular interview as its documents.
Iran's consulate in Dubai
Iran has a Consulate General in Dubai. The UAE foreign ministry's Dubai office received the credentials of Consul General Alireza Mahmoudi on , for Dubai and the Northern Emirates. We read the consulate's website, which loaded in Persian only. We could not confirm opening hours, interview slots or whether it processes visa visits at present. We will ask the consulate on your behalf if you want us to take the file.
Visa on arrival
Iran's e-visa site also describes a visa on arrival at its international airports. Apply electronically at least two days before travel, print the grant notice, show it at the visa on arrival counter and pay the fee at an airport bank terminal in euros. The page does not say which nationalities qualify, and it gives no fee, so we cannot quote one.
Documents and passport rules
- A passport or travel document valid for 6 months at the time of departure.
- A passport image and a digital photo to Iran's format.
- Travel plans, if booked.
- For British passports: an organised tour or a sponsor in Iran, says the UK Foreign Office. Applications cannot be sent from inside Iran.
- Avoid passports with Israeli stamps. The UK advice warns they can lead to refusal.
The same UK page says Iran does not recognise dual citizenship and treats dual nationals as Iranian. Iranian passport holders who live in the UAE should read Dubai visa for Iranians, because the UAE has its own entry notices for them.
Cost and market prices
Iran's pages we read give no tourist visa fee. No price range for Dubai agencies is shown here, because we found only one agency publishing a price. Do not accept a quote that does not split the Iranian government fee from the service fee.
What a refusal means
Government visa fees are not refunded after a refusal. We tell you in writing, before you pay, which part of our total comes back if that happens.
How it works with us
Send your passport page and plans through WhatsApp or the form on this page. An adviser checks Iran's rule for your passport and reads you the current travel advice for it. If you still want to go, you get one total price. We prepare the form and documents with you, file it on Iran's site, follow the status and tell you the result. We are a private visa service, and Iran's authorities decide.
Official sources
- Iran Ministry of Foreign Affairs, e-visa: application portal
- Iran e-visa, how to apply: steps, documents, 10 business days
- Iran e-visa, visa types: visa categories
- Iran e-visa, visa on arrival: airport rule, euros, passport validity
- UK Foreign Office, Iran travel advice: advice against all travel
- UK Foreign Office, Iran entry requirements: visa and passport rules
- UAE ministry of foreign affairs, travel ban notice: UAE nationals
- UAE ministry of foreign affairs, Iran consulate in Dubai: Consul General credentials
Nearby routes: Iraq, Oman and Turkey. Everything else: visas from Dubai.
