Travel agents see rise in bookings after start of amnesty period

Many expatriates seeking to benefit from the three-month amnesty for illegal residents have started booking air tickets, according to travel industry sources.

They also say they have been receiving telephone calls for the past few days inquiring about one-way air fares, mainly to South Asian and some African destinations.

More amnesty seekers are expected to book tickets in the coming weeks, a travel consultant told The Peninsula.

An open air ticket or one with a booking to travel in three days after reporting at the Search and Follow-Up Department of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) is one of the requirements for submitting an application for leaving the country during the amnesty period.

“We received customers on Wednesday and Thursday for bookings to Dhaka, Colombo and Kathmandu, who’re planning to take advantage of the amnesty period and book tickets accordingly,” he said.

“There were also several telephone enquiries about one-way ticket prices, and especially asking for lower rates,” he added.

An open air ticket is usually issued assuming the passenger would travel in a few days after the booking. Also, tickets issued to passengers such as amnesty seekers are mostly booked on a Qatar Airways flight and standard rates will be applied, according to industry experts.

“An open ticket will need to be re-issued once the travel date is confirmed, and sometimes an additional amount has to be paid. We usually book Qatar Airways flights for such passengers because it’s convenient as the airline has a dedicated office for them,” said a travel adviser.

“The amnesty period has just started and there will be many people wanting to leave the country, so definitely. We’ll be receiving a high number of such passengers in the coming weeks,” she added.

A one way ticket to Nepal’s capital Kathmandu would cost about QR1,100 to QR1,500; Colombo (Sri Lanka) QR850; Dhaka (Bangladesh) QR1,070 to QR2,400; Manila (The Philippines) QR1,200; Cairo (Egypt) QR1,350; and to Indian cities such as Mumbai QR1,100 and Kozhikode QR1,900 this month.

Besides air ticket, the MoI has issued a list of documents required to complete amnesty procedures, including a valid passport or a travel document issued by the embassy in case the passport is not available and ID card or copy of the entry visa.

Applications are received from 2pm to 8pm from Sunday to Thursday every week at the department.

Courtesy: thepeninsulaqatar.com