On 1 October, the e-TU electronic visa, a business visa and a humanitarian visa came into force.

«Until now, foreign tourists needed an official invitation approved by Turkmenistan’s migration service. In practice, this meant that a foreign tourist wishing to visit the country had to apply to a local licensed travel agency without fail. Under the new rules, an invitation is not mentioned among the documents required to obtain a tourist e-visa,» the Republican Union of Tourist Organizations explained.

The processing time for an electronic visa is up to 7 working days, while an urgent visa is issued within 3 days. There is also the option of an express visa, issued within 24 hours. The cost depends on the type of visa and the time required to obtain it.

Migration registration has also been simplified for tourists. Since April 2026, the registration of foreigners has also been moved to an electronic format. If a guest plans to stay in the country for more than three working days, the data on the place of stay can be submitted either by the host party or by the tourist via the internet. At some border crossing points, instant registration using biometrics is available.

According to experts, the introduction of electronic visas and the abolition of the mandatory invitation are only the first step towards turning Turkmenistan into a new tourism hotspot in the region. For travelers, the development could be a turning point that changes the rules of the game in Central Asia.

Tourists in Turkmenistan can see monumental Ashgabat, the natural wonder of the Karakum Desert and places linked to the legendary Silk Road. On a relatively small territory, ancient fortresses, Seljuk mausoleums, medieval minarets and mosques have been preserved. Three sites (Old Nisa, ancient Merv and Kunya-Urgench) are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The liberalization of Turkmenistan’s tourism legislation coincided with initiatives by neighboring countries to create a common tourism space. Uzbekistan, for instance, is actively promoting the idea of the Central Asian Tourism Ring. A combined Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan route looks like this: Khiva (Uzbekistan) — Kunya-Urgench — Ashgabat (Turkmenistan) — Mary and ancient Merv (UNESCO World Heritage sites) — Bukhara. For Turkmenistan, this offers a chance to integrate into the existing flow of travelers following the Great Silk Road.

The concept of a «Central Asian Schengen» — a single visa for visiting several countries in the region — is also currently under discussion. Although Turkmenistan has not yet officially confirmed its participation in this project, the launch of its own e-Visa is seen as an important signal of readiness for integration.

The electronic visa system operates on the migration. gov. tm portal. The website rgstr. migration. gov. tm is for the online registration of foreign citizens.

Belavia operates regular flights between Belarus and Turkmenistan twice a week. The travel time is 4 hours 25 minutes, and the distance is 2,420 km.