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Kathmandu, Sept 16: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has stopped issuing visit visas to Nepalis. The UAE has not given an official explanation for the sudden halt.

Nepali travel agencies handling visa applications confirmed that almost all applications have been rejected since Monday morning. The UAE issues visas online.

According to a travel agency operator, Dubai had already tightened its visa process some time ago, which led many Nepalis to apply through Sharjah instead. “About 90 percent of Dubai visa applications were being rejected, but Sharjah was still issuing them. Now that has also stopped,” the operator said.

He added that Sharjah had been offering one-month visas for 550 dirhams and two-month visas for 650 dirhams, with a deposit of 1,030 dirhams. The sudden halt is widely seen as a temporary suspension.

Travel agencies in Nepal and Dubai, authorized to handle UAE visa services, report that Dubai has been strict since January. Dubai had granted an amnesty period from September to December last year, after which visas became even more restrictive. Abu Dhabi had already stopped issuing visit visas, and now Sharjah’s move makes it harder for Nepalis to travel to the UAE.

A large number of Nepalis travel to the UAE on visit visas, often finding jobs and converting them to work visas.

Nepali Ambassador to the UAE Tej Bahadur Chhetri said the embassy has not received formal notice of the suspension. A Nepali activist in the UAE suggested the move could be linked to Nepal’s current political situation and the growing problems faced by Nepalis in the UAE.

Around 800,000 Nepalis are currently working in the UAE, according to estimates. Nearly 70,000 of them had initially traveled on visit visas and later converted them into work permits, the Nepali embassy in Abu Dhabi said. Many others use Dubai as a transit hub to travel to other countries.

In an earlier interview with Ratopati, Ambassador Chhetri had acknowledged that the rising number of Nepalis had led to more cases of overstaying, drug abuse, and other crimes. UAE officials had warned that such issues could hurt job prospects for Nepalis. “They have told us the problems are increasing, which is why we are working with Dubai Police and Abu Dhabi Police to run awareness campaigns,” Chhetri had said.