The latest statistics on Iran's inbound and outbound travelers during the nine months since the start of the current Iranian year (March 21, 2017) indicate that the balance between the two figures is swinging further in favor of outgoing travel. Close to 8.5 million Iranians left the country for foreign destinations during the period, of which over 4.5 million were pilgrims and about 3.8 million were non-religious travelers. The figure registers about 15.5% increase compared with the same period of last year with about 1.1 million more Iranians traveling abroad, the Persian daily Donya-e Eqtesad reported. The growth has widened the gap between inbound and outbound travel. Over the nine-month period of last year, the difference between the two figures was about 3.4 million that rose to over 4.5 million this year.
Drain on Foreign Exchange
This means that the country is facing a major outflow of foreign currency in return for a meager inflowing amount calling for proper measures to improve the balance.
In its latest attempt, the government proposed a threefold spike in departure tax to discourage Iranians from traveling abroad that was later approved by the parliament.
However, the Majlis has made exceptions for religious trips that constitute a significant share of overseas travel.
Out of the added 1.1 million tourists, nearly 999,000 were religious travelers and only about 142,000 individuals traveled to non-religious destinations. In other words, about 87% of the additional number pertained to pilgrimage.
Based on the law, the tax for religious trips, which is currently 375,000 rials ($8) for air travel and 125,000 rials ($3) for road journey, will remain the same while pilgrims to the Iraqi city of Karbala on the occasion of Arbaeen, the 40th day after the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (PBUH), will be exempt from the payment. With these exemptions, the government's policy does not seem likely to have a significant effect on the number of Iranians leaving the country on a trip and consequently, the depletion of foreign exchange.
Peak Times
The data shows that November, which coincided the occasion of Arbaeen ritual, was the peak month of travel for Iranians followed by the summer (August and September) and New Year holidays (March). In November, more than 2.5 million tourists traveled abroad, mostly to Iraq where a ceremony is held each year at the Shrine of Imam Hussein (PBUH).
On the contrary, the period expanding from late May to early June saw the smallest number of outbound trips, a slump mainly attributed to school and university examinations. Only 528,000 Iranian travelers left the country in this period.
Popular Destinations
Iraq was the top destination for Iranians with 3.7 million tourists. Turkey came next receiving 2.2 million Iranians in the nine-month period. Despite a modest decline, the UAE was the third popular destination for Iranians hosting 660,000 tourists. Azerbaijan, Germany, Georgia, Armenia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and China were other popular destinations while Afghanistan, Russia, Thailand, Malaysia and Italy were ranked 11th to 15th respectively.
Regarding the means of transport, the data indicate that four million people traveled by air, 4.2 million by land and 118,000 by sea.
