Hello All,
Just wondering if anyone from Oz Bargain has traveled to Iran on an Australian passport and used VOA visa on arrival option available to Australians instead of obtaining visa's from the embassy here in Australia.
Will be departing to Tehran on the 23rd August, before continuing to Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia etc.. (Hopefully if granted the IR visa)
Thanks in advance for any information you can provide.
I agree, actually just seen that movie on TV tonight lol
But the scene in Argo was completely fictional, in real life the Swiss Air flight was actually delayed an hour due to mechanical issues so there was no last minute "just made it" moment and no chase actually happened.
Depends how you travel, Personally I prefer the Visas in my passport before I go even if there is a choice of Visa upon arrival but it all depends on your schedule.
Australian applicants holding ordinary passports may apply for a 15-day tourist/pilgrimage visa on arrival at the Passport and Visas Offices at Intenational Airports of I.R. of Iran.
Airport Visa is granted at Mehrabad, IKIA, Kish, Qeshm, Boushehr, Shiraz, Tabriz, Mashhad, Esfahan, Asalouyeh and Chahbahar airports.
This type of visa is only for tourist purposes and the following applicants are NOT entitled to this visa facilitation:
Journalists and reporters on mission.
Holders of Diplomatic/Service passports
Those whose applications for Iranian Visa have been previously rejected.
Airport Visa is issued with the following conditions and requirements:
Tourist/Pilgrimage Visa applicants have no permission to work or study during their stay in Iran.
The applicants are required to have a confirmed return ticket and a valid passport with at least 6 months validity and a photo to be attached to the application form.
The applicants are required to submit one of the following proofs at the airport:
Address and contact number of the place in which they want to stay in Iran
Invitation Letter
Hotel booking confirmation for duration of their stay in Iran
Airport Visa fees are the same as the fees charged for the similar type of visa issued by the embassy (For Visa Fees, Please click here.).
Tarvel Agencies can submit an Electronic Visa 48 hours prior to passengers arrivals to facilitate their visas issuance at the international airports. Electronic Visa can be applied through the following link: www.mfa.gov.ir/cms/cms/Tehran/fa/evisa
Thanks for the information above,
Generally i will apply for a visa at the embassy here in Australia like i have for Vietnam, Brazil & Myanmar etc as i feel more comfortable having everything sorted otherwise i prefer to use the e-visa option as if have with India, Cambodia, Jordan etc.
I have used the VOA visa on arrival option many times while traveling around eg, Laos,Kuwait,Egypt,Bahrain,Qatar & Oman etc and had no problem with the procedure but i have been reading that Iran visas need a pre authorization code generally before you can apply for the standard visa at the embassy in Australia so im just confused if i still need this pre auth code for visa on arrival in Iran.
My other concern is applying for an Iranian visa in Australia grants you a 30 Day visa at $160+ AUD (and a longer process) where as a VOA Visa on arrival grants you 15 days and a cheaper price with much less hassle as you can just receive it at the airport.
i guess it's all up to how you want to do it, i had the option when travelling to vietnam to get my visa issued from aust, only to find when i landed in saigon and went through customs they shook they heads cancelled my visa and made me get another one from the airport.
We got ours before we left home in late 2013 as heard a few stories of people being randomly rejected for the VOA (admittedly unlikely). One benefit was immediately evident, on arrival in Shiraz we breezed straight through immigration while the VOA queue looked long and slow moving. We later talked to a guy in our hotel who said it took over 2 hours to get. Anyway might have just been a busy time of day, also maybe IKA will have a better setup?
Ive just sent an email to the consulate in Canberra, it seems pretty straight forward instructions of having your money for the visa,hotel voucher and onward or return flight ticket, just cant seem to get information on if the pre authorization reference number from Iran Tourism/Travel Agency's ($90+AUD) is still needed for the VOA as it kind of defeats the purpose.
I'm also trying to get my transit visa for Azerbaijan but seems to be a long annoying process also.
Thanks for the information randompunter appreciate it.
I don't think you need the MFA number for the VOA, as you said it would defeat the purpose. I think some of the online travel agents deliberately mislead people to get their MFA commission. Anyway if you go the tourist visa route I can recommend Touran Zamin for the MFA number, they were pretty prompt. They charged 35 euros via a Western Union transfer to their Swiss bank account.
Sorry can't help with the Azerbaijan transit visa. A quick google suggests that you can only get the transit visa in a neighbouring country's embassy or you could go for an e-visa but that requires pre-booking with a travel agency who would register with the MFA on your behalf. At least with the e-visa you wouldn't have to stuff around at the Azer embassy in Tehran or send your passport away. Good luck and have a great trip!
Everytime I think of Iran esp Iranian airports, I recall the last scene from the movie Argo and my heart just skips a bit.