US passport holders need a visa for Egypt. You have three ways to get one: the official
e-Visa online before you fly, a visa on arrival bought at the airport, or a visa from an Egyptian
consulate in the United States. Most travelers use one of the first two.
If you have been searching this, you have already noticed that published prices disagree with
each other. That is a real problem with the indexed web rather than a misunderstanding on your part,
and the first section explains exactly why it happens.
Three different things get called "the Egypt visa fee", and they genuinely cost different
amounts:
On top of that, the government fee changed. It was long quoted at a lower figure, and a great
many travel articles were written while that was true and never updated. Those pages are still
indexed and still ranking, which is why you can find three prices in the first three results.
As of August 2026, the official Egyptian e-Visa costs 30 USD for a single-entry
visa and 65 USD for a multiple-entry visa. The single entry is what a normal tourist trip
needs; multiple entry matters only if you plan to leave Egypt and come back within the same trip,
for example to add Jordan or Israel and return.
The only source we would trust for this is the government portal itself at
visa2egypt.gov.eg. Check it before you pay, including against this page. We date
our figure precisely so you can see how old it is; anyone quoting a price with no date attached is
asking you to assume nothing has changed since they wrote it.
Note the earlier fee still circulating widely online. If a page quotes it without a date, that is
a good signal the rest of the page has not been reviewed recently either.
Both end with the same sticker in your passport. The difference is where you stand while you get
it.
The e-Visa is applied for online before you travel, at the government portal. You
upload a passport scan, pay by card, and receive an approval to print. It removes a queue at a point
in the trip where you are tired, and it means an approval problem surfaces at home rather than at a
counter in Cairo. Apply with a comfortable margin rather than the night before.
The visa on arrival is bought at a bank counter in the arrivals hall before you
reach passport control. It is straightforward and normally quick. The catch is the payment method,
which surprises Americans more than anything else on this page.
The visa on arrival is paid in US dollars, in cash. Not by card. The US State
Department states this plainly, and it is the single most common practical mistake we see from
American travelers, who increasingly carry almost no cash at home.
What to bring:
Bring the cash even if you have an approved e-Visa. Small US bills are useful across the whole
trip for tips, and you do not want your first cash need to be at an airport exchange rate.
The tourist visa is normally valid for a stay of up to 30 days. If your trip runs longer, or you
are traveling for anything other than tourism, the rules differ and the government portal is where
to confirm what applies to you.
Travelers arriving at Sharm el Sheikh and staying within the South Sinai resort area can, under
certain conditions, receive a free entry permit instead of a full visa. It is limited to that region
and to a short stay.
The trap: that permit does not cover travel outside the area. If your plan
includes St Catherine's Monastery, Cairo or anywhere in the Nile valley, you need a full visa. This
is the most common administrative mistake on Red Sea trips, and it is discovered at a checkpoint
rather than at the airport. If in doubt, buy the full visa.
The government e-Visa fee is 30 USD for single entry as of August 2026. The lower figure is
an older price that remains widely published on pages written before it changed. Confirm at
visa2egypt.gov.eg.
Yes, at a bank counter before passport control, paid in US dollars cash. The e-Visa simply moves
that step to before you fly.
Processing times vary, so apply with margin rather than in the final days before departure.
Rules differ for cruise passengers arriving by sea and often depend on whether you stay with an
organized shore excursion. Confirm with your cruise operator and the government portal.
Yes, and it is counted from your date of entry. Renew early if you are close.
The visa is the one piece of the trip we cannot handle for you, and it is worth resolving before
the rest. Our quotes cover the ground arrangements inside Egypt, and your international flight and
your visa are yours to arrange.
If you are unsure whether your route needs single or multiple entry, tell us what you are
planning and we will tell you which applies.
Message us on WhatsApp.
Related reading: is Egypt safe for Americans,
Egypt tour packages, and
what is included in an Egypt tour.
