Dubai Visa Fee Hikes For Canadians

[cdnvic]

http://www.canada.com/news/Canada+only+country+facing+high+visa+fees+embassy/4042963/story.html

OTTAWA — Visas and any fees Canadians have to pay to enter the United Arab Emirates are part of a "universal visa system" that applies to countries around the world, the U.A.E. Embassy says.

The country's Ottawa-based embassy issued a statement Thursday suggesting Canada is not the sole country facing the expensive fees, just before new rules are set to come into effect Jan. 2.

"The Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Canada announces that fees for all visas issued by the diplomatic missions of the United Arab Emirates in various countries around the world, whose nationals are not exempt from applying for visas in advance, are applicable to all countries without exception," the statement read.

"The Embassy would like to add that the categories of visas and related fees as posted on its website are part of a universal visa system which is used by all U.A.E. missions abroad without exception."

Canadians will soon have to pay up to $1,000 for visas to enter the U.A.E., though citizens of most other western countries don't have to pay. The website says citizens of 32 countries — including the United States, France, Italy, Germany and Hong Kong — can enter the U.A.E. without a visa and stay for one-month period.

Meanwhile, according to the embassy's website, three-month visas will be $500 and one-month stays will cost Canadians $250. A six-month, multiple-entry visa would cost Canadians $1,000. The website also shows the U.K. and Mexico are subject to similar fees.

Although it also describes the U.A.E.'s 35-year relationship with Canada as "strong" and "flourishing," the two countries have experienced strained ties in previous months following failed negotiations.

The Middle Eastern country has been upset with Canada after negotiations fell through between the two countries over expanded landing rights in Canada for two U.A.E.-based carriers.

In October, a plane carrying Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Walter Natynczyk, who were visiting Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan, was refused entry into the U.A.E.'s airspace, marking an abrupt change in the two countries' relationship.

The U.A.E. government also evicted Canadian troops from Camp Mirage, the not-so-secret Canadian base near Dubai, in a move that was largely seen as retaliatory.