Olympics tourism spin-off expected

VISA WAIVER:A "VISA liberalisation" initiative announced by Minister for Justice Alan Shatter will make it easier for tourists from India, China, Russia and Middle Eastern states to visit Ireland.

Mr Shatter said current regulations acted as a disincentive to foreign tourists and businesspeople who wanted to make a trip to Ireland as an “add-on” to a visit to Britain.

He said the €60 required to enter the State would be waived for citizens from 14 countries who had already obtained visas to enter the United Kingdom for short-term visits of up to 180 days. This would apply to people from China, India, eastern European and Middle Eastern countries.

“I believe it is vital to ensure that this State is an easily accessible and attractive holiday and business destination and that the tens of thousands who visit the UK as our immediate neighbour have an incentive to also spend some time with us on this island,” Mr Shatter said.

Last year approximately 30,000 people were issued visas from the participating countries to come here, meaning the State could forgo some €1.8 million if the new scheme was run over a full year.

Mr Shatter said a pilot scheme, which could be expanded, would run from this July until October 2012. He said the initiative was aimed at what he called “growing and emerging” tourism markets, and would coincide with the 2012 Olympics. Mr Shatter said Ireland risked losing out on “a substantial tourism spin-off” if it did not alter its visa requirements.

Among the eastern European countries involved are: Belarus, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine. The Middle Eastern states are Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The scheme will also apply to citizens of Uzbekistan.

Describing the scheme as “a major change in public policy”, Mr Shatter said it had the potential to significantly increase the number of visitors coming to Ireland.

“I am not, of course, going so far as to suggest that these measures will transform our tourism industry but they have the potential, if properly followed through, to significantly increase our tourist visitor numbers.” Mr Shatter said the announcement would save potential tourists the inconvenience of form-filling and document submission. He gave the example of a family of four from India who wanted to travel to Ireland after visiting London, saying the cost of their visas would currently be €240. “This will be zero from July 1st,” he said.

Concluding the announcement in the Dáil, Mr Shatter said his message was: “Ireland is very much open for business”.

The announcement was welcomed by Tourism Ireland chief executive Niall Gibbons, who described it as “imaginative”.