7. Visa and Immigration for Tourists in Bangladesh

Visa and immigration are essential formalities for foreign nationals to enter or stay in any country of the world. Tourists as foreigners to a country also need visas and to respect the host country immigration. The importance of visas and immigration get importance. Still, few tourism literature studies have explored diverse aspects of visas and immigration for tourists. Especially, research works on visas and immigration of a South Asian country as Bangladesh have a severe lacking. Hence, this chapter understands the global trends of visa and immigration in tourism. In doing so, the research presents relevant conceptual explanations and examples. This explanations and examples are then related to the context of Bangladesh. The chapter then analytically presents the existing visa and immigration procedures of the country while considering the earlier literal discussions. The research finds that although number of foreign tourist arrival is decreased, the government of Bangladesh tries to follow standard visa and immigration policy to attract international tourists and align the global standard. However, both the availability and accessibility of the most updated facilities and services are yet to be ensured. The chapter stresses on carrying out learning tourist demands regularly and efficiently. This can allow the relevant policy planners and officials to formulate effective, timely and beneficial visa and immigration system networks for tourists in Bangladesh.