New e-visa is a good thing for Turkish tourism

The news that British tourists heading to Turkey this summer will have to apply online for an electronic visa before they travel may not have been welcomed by holidaymakers. But a major holiday company says the introduction of the new e-visa is a positive step for tourists and will help to reduce lengthy queues at Turkish airports. Specialist tour operator Anatolian Sky Holidays said that holidaymakers often had to wait for hours in visa queues on arrival in Turkey and were required to have the right money in English pounds to pay for it. Anatolian Sky managing director Akin Koc, who is also chairman of the Association of Turkish Specialist Tour Operators, claimed the new scheme was a 'positive move'. He told travel industry magazine Travel Weekly: ‘I welcome the change because the client will have extra time when they arrive at the airport and it will be a hassle-free start to their holiday.’ The e-visa will cost the same as before and will be emailed to travellers for China Work Visa application form them to print out at home after they have provided their name, date and place of birth, email address and passport details. They will then be required to present the document to immigration on arrival. According to one immigration official: 'The entire process takes less than 10 minutes and it will speed up the whole visa application and processing system.' Cruise ship passengers with British passports entering the country for a day trip, remaining in China Student Visa application the port of embarkation and returning to the ship the same day will continue to be able to enter Turkey without a visa or e-visa. Mr Koc said Anatolian Sky would require customers to pay them the cost of the visa when booking their holiday but would then fill the form in for free, which he said would ‘defuse the problems at airports’. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has warned holidaymakers about unauthorised websites that could try to charge an additional application fee for the visas. 'These websites are not endorsed by or associated with the Turkish government. Be wary of such sites and businesses, particularly those that seek additional fees for other services.' The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has warned travel agents about the changes and says it will continue to advise them to ensure that holidaymakers are told ahead of their trips. An ABTA spokeswoman said: 'We have already informed our members about the need for consumers travelling to Turkey to apply online for a visa for travel after 10/4/14 and we will be reminding them again this week. 'Turkey is an extremely important destination for our members and we are concerned that consumers, particularly those who have not booked through ABTA members, may not be aware of the new requirement and may as a consequence be refused entry to Turkey.' Turkey is among the five most popular holiday destinations for Britons and a very important market for package holidays. But tourism was badly affected by political protests last year. Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism had to last summer reassure tourists that it is safe to visit the country as anti-government protests took place in Istanbul and popular holiday resorts including Bodrum and Marmaris.