CAIRO: Mark Hopkins has lived in Egypt for the past three years studying Arabic at a local private school, but when he went to renew his tourist visa in order to continue his studies, Egyptian officials told him he couldn't have an extension. “I have at least 5 tourist visa extensions,” he told Bikya Masr, showing his blue American passport, which is filled with Egyptian visas. “It is frustrating that they are cracking down on tourists wanting to stay longer.” Then, turning to the more traditional route, Hopkins asked the International Language Institute where he was taking courses for a letter he could take to the authorities in order to obtain a student visa. Upon arrival, however, he was again turned away. Officials told him only national universities could provide student visas for foreigners in the country, he said. The moves have left many foreign nationals living in Egypt frustrated, but Egyptian officials said that the moves are part of a plan to become part of the international community's regular restrictions on tourists in a country. “All we are doing is enforcing the rules of law that most tourists in other countries abide by so it shouldn't come as a surprise to the foreigners who are not getting extensions,” said Amr Abdelmaged, a mid-level tourism ministry official who works in the immigration department. “We have seen a lot of frustration from foreigners, but the reality is that unless they are working or studying at an approved school, they don't have the right to keep staying without providing the proper documents,” he added. Still, a number of foreigners have reported that Egyptian authorities have even turned down work permits, leaving many wondering of the future of foreign nationals in the country. “I am still waiting to hear back about my work visa and it has been a few weeks so it is frustrating because I have a job and until I get the work permit I can't work,” said one American citizen who asked not to be named. Not giving out visas to foreigners could leave the tourism industry in jeopardy, experts argue. They say that despite the need to bolster restrictions on visas to foreigners, Egypt's current economic situation should not move too quickly in forcing out revenue sources. In 2008, tourism to Egypt brought in some $11 billion and 12.8 million visitors, making it one of the largest sources of income for the North African country, the tourism ministry has reported. With many of those being foreign “residents” in the country, ending visa extensions could have adverse affects on the attempts to bolster foreigners traveling to the country. Hopkins said that if he cannot get an extension, he might simply leave the country for good and go elsewhere. “I know what they are doing, but it is frustrating, especially if they won't give student visas for those of us studying at local private schools. That doesn't make sense,” he added. Those small schools could also face major setbacks if students are unable to stay in country for the duration of classes. One former German student of ILI in Cairo said that she has been in contact with former instructors who fear that if the government doesn't give student visas to those attending, it could see massive drops in attendance. “They said that if students are not able to stay in Egypt for a couple months, it will be hard for them to find people to attend, which leaves the question if they can survive if the new restrictions are not amended,” said Lena Egger, a long-time Cairo resident and student, who is on the final two weeks of her visa in the country. For now, many foreigners in Egypt currently are confused, frustrated and worried over the legal status in the country. Many are simply deciding to overstay their visas and pay a penalty to leave the country when they choose to stay. That, others say, could lead to a widespread crackdown and ultimately see the banning of individuals who abuse the system. Abdelmaged said the ministry has yet to decide on overstay limits, but is looking into tacking on additional fees if too many foreigners decide to overstay their visas. “Right now, we are in a process of investigating and looking into all possibilities and hopefully soon we will know exactly what is going to happen and we will publicize this to all travelers to the country,” he said. BM
