President Mirziyoyev signed decree Thursday ordering to draft more lenient visa overstay regulation. The Interior Ministry, together with the Prosecutor General’s Office, the State Security Service, the Ministry of Justice and other agencies, have been tasked to submit a draft bill to the Legislative Chamber providing for more leniency for visa overstay offences, with differentiated fines and ensuring prompt ruling of such cases by the authorized state bodies.
The regulation review was prompted by a case in early January when a married couple from Switzerland was not allowed to leave the country due to tourist visa overstay of one and two days and which sparked public outcry. The Uzbek Tourism Committee then stated that the current regulations were failing to meet the modern trends.
