Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Polish counterpart Radosław Sikorski inked an agreement in Riyadh on 29 January exempting holders of diplomatic, service and special passports from visa requirements. The deal, which takes immediate effect, allows accredited officials of both countries to enter, transit and stay for up to 90 days in any 180-day period without consular formalities.
The exemption streamlines governmental and trade missions at a time when Polish contractors are increasingly active in the Gulf’s giga-projects—particularly Saudi Arabia’s NEOM and airport-expansion programmes—and Riyadh seeks Polish expertise in advanced mining machinery and food processing. According to Poland’s Ministry of Economic Development, bilateral trade surpassed €4 billion in 2025, up 17 % year-on-year, with further growth forecast in engineering services and green hydrogen technology.
For corporate mobility teams the move removes one of the last bureaucratic hurdles for official travellers, cutting typical lead-times for diplomatic visas from two weeks to zero. Private-sector employees are unaffected, but observers expect negotiations on a wider business-traveller facilitation arrangement to follow if the pilot proves successful.
![Poland and Saudi Arabia sign mutual visa-free deal for diplomatic and service passports]()
Even though the latest exemption applies only to officials, companies and individual travelers still need to juggle multiple document types for accompanying staff, experts and family members. VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) offers real-time guidance on Saudi entry rules, arranges courier submission of courtesy visas where still required, and can pre-screen ordinary passports for upcoming business-traveller schemes—helping organizations stay compliant while the new agreement beds in.
Practically, Polish embassies will continue to issue gratis “courtesy” visas where needed until both countries’ border systems recognise the exemption electronically—something Warsaw’s consular IT unit says should be completed by March. Officials are advising passport holders to carry a copy of the agreement during the transition period.
The accord is part of Poland’s broader strategy to diversify diplomatic engagement beyond the EU and North America. Similar exemptions with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are reportedly in the pipeline for 2026.
The exemption streamlines governmental and trade missions at a time when Polish contractors are increasingly active in the Gulf’s giga-projects—particularly Saudi Arabia’s NEOM and airport-expansion programmes—and Riyadh seeks Polish expertise in advanced mining machinery and food processing. According to Poland’s Ministry of Economic Development, bilateral trade surpassed €4 billion in 2025, up 17 % year-on-year, with further growth forecast in engineering services and green hydrogen technology.
For corporate mobility teams the move removes one of the last bureaucratic hurdles for official travellers, cutting typical lead-times for diplomatic visas from two weeks to zero. Private-sector employees are unaffected, but observers expect negotiations on a wider business-traveller facilitation arrangement to follow if the pilot proves successful.
Even though the latest exemption applies only to officials, companies and individual travelers still need to juggle multiple document types for accompanying staff, experts and family members. VisaHQ’s Poland portal (https://www.visahq.com/poland/) offers real-time guidance on Saudi entry rules, arranges courier submission of courtesy visas where still required, and can pre-screen ordinary passports for upcoming business-traveller schemes—helping organizations stay compliant while the new agreement beds in.
Practically, Polish embassies will continue to issue gratis “courtesy” visas where needed until both countries’ border systems recognise the exemption electronically—something Warsaw’s consular IT unit says should be completed by March. Officials are advising passport holders to carry a copy of the agreement during the transition period.
The accord is part of Poland’s broader strategy to diversify diplomatic engagement beyond the EU and North America. Similar exemptions with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are reportedly in the pipeline for 2026.
