Egypt visa 2026: what actually changed this year and what hasn't

Are you trying to figure out the Egypt visa rules for 2026? A few things changed this year, leaving a lot of outdated advice floating around online. We have looked at where things actually stands at this point in time.

The biggest change is the pricing. Fees went up a few months ago. The single-entry e-Visa and the standard airport visa on arrival both cost US$30 now, and a multiple-entry visa is US$65. This is why older articles still quote £20. We keep seeing holiday groups on various social media channels claim the airport visa costs £30 and takes seconds. In reality it is closer to £22 (US$30), the queue is very real when the airport gets busy and you should always use the official counters.

Then there is the installation of new digital kiosks at Cairo Airport. As of August 1, they have self-service kiosks issuing a visa on arrival for US$36. You pay more than the standard US$30 fee, but this automated option is strictly Cairo only for now (essentially, it is a trial before expanding to other airports).

There has been no change to other rules. The free South Sinai entry stamp for stays under 15 days in places like Sharm El Sheikh, Dahab, Nuweiba and Taba still applies for some nationalities. But remember that Hurghada is on the 'mainland' and has never been covered by it.

The promised scrapping of paper landing cards never happened, so cabin crew will still hand you one to fill out. And if you apply before flying, visa2egypt.gov.eg remains the only legitimate portal.

We are working through an update to our own guidance to reflect all of this. Happy to answer questions in the comments in the meantime.

For anyone who visited recently: did you use the new Cairo kiosks? How was your experience?