Photo: forum.airlines-inform.ru
In Turkmenistan, agencies that arrange visas have begun taking deposits from tourists to cover possible fines for citizens who travel abroad on tourist visas and fail to return, turkmen.news reports.
For example, applying for a tourist visa to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) now requires a $500 deposit for a 60-day stay.
“Agencies are protecting themselves from fines for so-called ‘non-returnees’ — people who leave on a tourist visa but remain abroad to work. If caught in the UAE, both the individual and the local organization that issued the visa are penalized. That organization then demands reimbursement from its partners in Turkmenistan,” the outlet writes.
Turkmen intermediaries are covering these risks through reserve funds formed from deposits. Although the deposit is refunded once the traveler returns, the measure significantly raises trip costs.
A representative of a travel agency in Ashgabat said fines across clients can total tens of thousands of dollars. Visa prices through intermediaries are also far higher than official rates: a 30-day visa costs about $150 and a 60-day visa $270, compared with government fees of 200 and 300 dirhams (about $55 and $82).
Despite the higher costs, agency services remain in demand because applying independently at embassies involves language barriers, corruption risks, and unclear procedures. For example, to obtain a UAE visa, Turkmen citizens must present a return ticket, but the national carrier Turkmenistan Airlines sells only one-way tickets.
The demand is linked less to tourism than to labor migration. Between 2022 and 2024, trips by Turkmen citizens to Russia on tourist visas increased sixteenfold, while deportations also rose.
Turkey shows a similar trend. According to its authorities, the number of Turkmen citizens detained without proper documents tripled between 2022 and 2023 — from 4,343 to 13,083. Since then, the figure has remained at roughly the same level, well above pre-pandemic numbers.
In the UAE, where migrants make up nearly 90 percent of the population, Turkmen citizens do not stand out in the statistics. But sources familiar with the situation note a rise in Turkmen traveling there as “tourists” who remain to work.
Experts cite Turkmenistan’s social and economic conditions as the main driver: low wages, compulsory labor duties, and corruption push many citizens to seek jobs abroad.
