Iraq has launched a new electronic visa system for investors and businesspeople from Türkiye, with applications to be processed within 24 hours.
The system became operational on Dec. 10 and was announced during a ceremony held at the Iraqi Embassy in Ankara with delegations from both countries.
The visas will initially be issued specifically to investors and business professionals and applications can be finalized in as little as 24 hours, Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesperson Abbas al-Bahadli said.
“This visa will include certain features, including the possibility of extension, all designed to facilitate investment and business activities in Iraq for investors and businesspeople from Türkiye,” he added.
Iraq’s Director General of Population and Passports, Nashat Alkhafaji, said they launched the procedures in Ankara this week and will begin in Istanbul next week.
“In this way, an experience developed inside the country is now being transferred abroad,” he noted.
Alkhafaji also stated that Iraq has begun issuing electronic passports and that Türkiye is among 20 countries equipped with the necessary infrastructure.
He added that visas for entry into Iraq can now be completed entirely online. Highlighting that Iraq is undergoing a “profound transformation,” Alkhafaji said, “As of yesterday, starting with population services, we have begun issuing identity documents electronically.”
Türkiye and Iraq collaborate across a broad spectrum of fields.
According to Halit Acar, chairman of the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) Türkiye-Iraq Business Council, Türkiye and Iraq could boost their bilateral trade volume to $30 billion.
Acar stressed that the Development Road Project will inject significant momentum into bilateral trade, creating a vital transit corridor that will benefit not only Iraq and Türkiye but also the wider Middle East, Africa and Europe.
He noted that Turkish companies, while currently more active as subcontractors in Iraq’s reconstruction efforts, could take on larger roles in the future.
