The Indonesian government has granted its visa-on-arrival (VoA) facility to 50 countries in an effort to boost the tourism sector in the country, an official said on Wednesday.

Starting June 6, the number of countries entitled to the VoA facility has reached 50, said Soepriyatna Anwar, public relations officer at the Immigration Directorate General at the Justice and Human Rights Ministry.

The facility was also aimed at helping the VoA granted- countries to make visits for social, business and administration affairs, he said, adding that the policy was also expected to strengthen bilateral relations and mutual benefits between Indonesian and the VoA receiving countries.

The 50 countries are South Africa, the United States, Peru, Argentine, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, the United Arab Emirates, Finland, Hungary, India, Britain, Iran, Ireland, Islandia, Italy, Japan, Germany, Cambodia, Canada, South Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Maldives, Malta, Mexico, Egypt, Monaco, Norway, Oman, France, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, China, Russia, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand, Spain, Suriname, Sweden and Greek.

Indonesia also granted visa-on-arrival to some regions, such as Taiwan, a province of China.

Soepriyatna said foreign citizens who get the VoA facility for a seven-day stay in Indonesia have to pay 10 U.S. dollars while the fee for a 30 day-stay was 25 U.S. dollars.

He said visa issued on the visitor's arrival was not extendable and cannot be converted into visa for purposes other than short visits.

Source: Xinhua