How to apply for a business visa

Applications for business visas should be made at the Iraqi Consulate prior to departure. Consular officials at the Iraqi Embassy have indicated that visa approval can take two to six weeks from the date of submission. Visas are issued to business people, provided that they have official invitations from Iraqi authorities or are introduced as such by their respective Ministries of Foreign Affairs and are supplied with letters from the Chamber of Commerce. Applicants should also submit a letter of request from their own company stating the reason for their travel.

 

How to travel to Iraq

There are a growing number of commercial airline flights from Europe and the U.S. to Iraq's main cities.

 

Baghdad

Airline	Destinations
Bahrain Air	Bahrain
Cham Wings Airlines	Damascus
Flying Carpet	Beirut
Gulf Air	Bahrain
Gryphon Airlines	Kuwait
Iraqi Airways	Amman, Bahrain, Basrah, Beirut, Cairo, Damascus, Doha, Dubai, Düsseldorf, Erbil, Frankfurt, Istanbul-Atatürk, Jeddah, Karachi, Malmö, Mosul, Najaf, Stockholm-Arlanda, Sulaymaniyah, Tehran-Imam Khomeini
Jupiter Airlines	Dubai
Mahan Air	Tehran-Imam Khomeini
Middle East Airlines	Beirut
Royal Jordanian	Amman
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul-Atatürk

 

Erbil

Airlines	Destinations
Atlasjet	Istanbul-Atatürk
Austrian Airlines	Vienna
Gulf Air	Bahrain
Iraqi Airways	Baghdad, Basrah, Beirut, Oman, Stockholm-Arlanda, Sulaymaniyah, Tehran Imam Khomeini
Jupiter Airlines	Dubai
Vision Air International	Dubai
Royal Jordanian	Amman
Viking Airlines	Stokholm-Arlanda, Birmingham

 

Basrah

Airlines	Destinations
AVE.com	Sharjah
Jupiter Airlines	Dubai
Iraqi Airways	Amman, Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus, Dubai, Erbil, Oman, Sulaymaniyah
MCA Airlines	Stockholm
Royal Jordanian	Amman
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul

 

Mosul

Airlines	Destinations
Iraqi Airways	Baghdad, Dubai
Jupiter Airlines	Dubai, Istanbul
Royal Jordanian Airlines	Amman

 

Frequency or availability of flights are subject to change. Please refer to your preferred airline for current flight schedules.

Airline Websites

Airline	Website
Iraqi Airways	www.iq-airways.com
Turkish Airlines	www.thy.com
Royal Jordanian	www.rj.com
Austrian Airways	www.aua.com
Atlas Jet International	www.atlasjet.com

Places to Stay

The most popular hotels in Baghdad are located near the Tigris River. Hotels inside the International Zone (IZ) (formerly known as the “Green Zone”) include the 400-room AI-Rasheed Hotel, which has recently been refurbished. There are several popular hotels in the AI-Rasafa district on the eastern side of the Tigris river. These include the Ishtar Hotel, which is near the trade market overlooking the Tigris, and the Palestine Hotel which is close by. For business people who prefer to stay outside the city, Baghdad International Airport Hotel opened in November 2008.

 

Rotana Hotels has signed an agreement with Summit Hotels to manage a 5-star property in Baghdad, Iraq

 

For Reservations, Please contact the PR department at the Iraqi National Investment Commission (info@investpromo.gov.iq).

 

Communications

Zain, Asiacell and Korek provide mobile telephone services. Internet connections are available; speed is currently comparable to an early DSL connection, though available bandwidth is growing. IT systems in the ministries are generally outdated, so responses to emails can sometimes be slow. Investors should be aware that many senior ministry officials use ‘Hotmail’ or ‘Yahoo’ email addresses, and that many of these inboxes are monitored by multiple individuals.