Visa-Free Countries for a Bangladeshi Passport (2026)
Quick Answer
Direct from Dhaka, only three destinations require nothing arranged in advance: Nepal and the Maldives on a free visa on arrival, and Sri Lanka with an online ETA approved before you fly (USD 20 at the SAARC rate). The rest of the widely published list — Caribbean and Pacific island states — is genuinely visa-free, but reaching those countries means transiting a country that a Bangladeshi passport holder needs a visa for. The list is long; the usable part is not.
The ones you can actually use from Dhaka
All three have direct flights from Dhaka, and none require an embassy visit.
Nepal
Visa on arrival — maximum stay 30 days. Cost: Free — SAARC gratis visa, first entry of each calendar year. Direct from Dhaka.
The easiest international trip from Bangladesh. Biman and Himalaya fly Dhaka–Kathmandu in about 1 hour 30 minutes. No advance application of any kind. Carry a confirmed return ticket — it is required for the on-arrival visa and is checked at Dhaka check-in.
Source: Nepal Department of Immigration; URAL route data
Maldives
Visa on arrival — maximum stay 30 days. Cost: Free. Direct from Dhaka.
Free visa on arrival for tourism, but the IMUGA Traveller Declaration must be submitted online before you fly — airlines at Dhaka will not board you without it. Direct flights take about 4 hours.
Hotel booking and a return ticket are checked on arrival. Proof of funds may be requested.
Source: Maldives Immigration (IMUGA); URAL route data
Sri Lanka
ETA (apply before flying) — maximum stay 30 days, double entry. Cost: USD 20 (SAARC rate) — USD 50 for most other nationalities. Direct from Dhaka.
Bangladesh pays the reduced SAARC rate. Apply only at eta.gov.lk — many third-party sites charge two to four times as much for the same application. Approval is usually within 24–48 hours, so allow three days before flying.
This is an authorisation approved before departure, not a visa on arrival — Sri Lanka discontinued visa on arrival in October 2025. Bangladesh is not on the waiver list, so it still pays USD 20.
Source: Sri Lanka ETA portal (eta.gov.lk), SAARC rate schedule
Full step-by-step checklists: Nepal visa guide, Maldives visa guide, and all visa guides for Bangladeshi citizens.
The rest of the list — and why it misleads
These destinations require no visa in advance for a Bangladeshi passport. But getting to them from Dhaka almost always means transiting the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe or the Gulf, and a Bangladeshi passport holder needs a visa for those transit countries. A visa-free destination you cannot legally reach is not visa-free in any useful sense.
Visa-free entry
Bahamas, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Cook Islands, Dominica, Fiji, Gambia, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Kiribati, Micronesia, Montserrat, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Vanuatu.
Visa on arrival
Burundi, Cambodia (USD 30, 30 days — the most reachable of these), Cape Verde, Comoros, Djibouti, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Mozambique, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Timor-Leste (USD 30, 30 days), Tuvalu.
The ones people assume are easy — and aren't
None of these will admit an ordinary Bangladeshi passport without a visa arranged first, and all of them are commonly assumed to.
UAE (Dubai)
Visa required — Roughly AED 200–690 depending on duration and sponsor, As issued (typically 30 or 60 days).
A pre-arranged tourist visa is mandatory, obtained through an airline, a licensed travel agency, or a UAE-based sponsor. There is no visa-on-arrival and no visa-free entry for ordinary Bangladeshi passports.
The one exception: holders of a valid residence permit or visa from certain other countries (including some GCC states, the US, the UK or Schengen) may qualify for visa on arrival. If you do not hold one, assume you need the visa in advance.
Source: UAE government visa guidance; multiple UAE visa authorities, 2026
Thailand
Visa required — Check the current government e-Visa fee and payment charges in the portal/Embassy schedule; optional agency fees vary by provider, As issued (commonly 60 days).
Bangladeshi passport holders need an approved Tourist e-Visa before departure. Apply through Thailand's official portal and follow the current Dhaka mission checklist; visa on arrival and visa exemption are not available.
The Embassy's public TR checklist was last updated November 30, 2022 and lists BDT 60,000 per person/BDT 120,000 per family with six-month statements. Confirm the current financial evidence and separate government, bank/payment, and optional agency charges before applying.
Source: Royal Thai Embassy, Dhaka; Thai e-Visa portal
Malaysia
e-Visa (apply before flying) — Approx. MYR 100–200 depending on type, As issued (commonly 30 days).
Bangladesh is not on Malaysia's visa-exemption list. Apply for the eVisa online and submit the MDAC (Malaysia Digital Arrival Card) within three days of arrival.
Source: Malaysia Immigration Department (eVisa / MDAC)
Singapore
Visa required — Approx. SGD 30 plus agent fees, As issued (commonly 30 days).
A visa is required before travel for Bangladeshi passport holders. Applications are usually lodged through an authorised agent or a Singapore-based contact.
Source: Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, Singapore
Indonesia
e-Visa (apply before flying) — Approx. USD 50 for the e-Visa on arrival, As issued (commonly 30 days).
Indonesia operates an e-Visa on arrival, but for Bangladeshi applicants it has generally required a local sponsor or guarantor. Most travellers end up applying through an agent, so do not assume you can simply land and apply.
This is the entry most often reported differently by different sources. Confirm the current requirement with the Indonesian embassy before booking.
Source: Indonesia Directorate General of Immigration (eviza.imigrasi.go.id)
Turkey
e-Visa (apply before flying) — Approx. USD 60 for the e-Visa, As issued (commonly 30 days).
Turkey's e-Visa is available to Bangladeshi passport holders only on conditions — typically holding a valid visa or residence permit from the US, UK, Schengen area or Ireland. Without one, apply at the embassy.
Source: Republic of Türkiye e-Visa portal
Whatever the destination, carry these
- Passport valid 6+ months — Almost every airline measures validity from your date of return, not departure. A passport with five months left will be refused at the Dhaka check-in desk even if the destination would have admitted you.
- Confirmed return or onward ticket — Required for visa-on-arrival destinations such as Nepal and the Maldives, and checked at boarding. An unconfirmed hold is not enough.
- Hotel booking or host address — Immigration may ask where you are staying. A screenshot is fine; a verbal answer is not.
- Proof of funds — A bank statement, an internationally enabled card (see the dual-currency endorsement guide), or a modest amount of US dollars in cash.
- Printed copies — Of the visa or approval, the return ticket and the hotel booking. Airport Wi-Fi fails; printed paper does not.
- Travel insurance — Mandatory for the UAE and increasingly expected elsewhere. Buy it before you fly — policies purchased after departure generally exclude the incident.
Visa-free travel on a Bangladeshi passport — common questions
How many countries can a Bangladeshi passport visit without a visa?
The Henley Passport Index put Bangladesh at 97th in its July 2026 edition, with access to 35 destinations counting visa-free, visa-on-arrival and electronic travel authorisation entry. That number excludes e-Visas, which need an online application before departure. For practical purposes the useful figure is much smaller: only three destinations can be reached directly from Dhaka without arranging anything in advance — Nepal and the Maldives on free visa on arrival, and Sri Lanka with an online ETA approved before you fly.
Which countries can Bangladeshi passport holders visit without any prior visa?
Nepal grants a free 30-day visa on arrival for the first entry of each calendar year under the SAARC gratis scheme, and the Maldives grants a free 30-day visa on arrival with a mandatory online IMUGA Traveller Declaration. Both have direct flights from Dhaka. Sri Lanka requires an ETA — approved online before departure, not issued on arrival — at the reduced SAARC rate of USD 20. Beyond these, the genuinely visa-free destinations are Caribbean and Pacific island states that cannot be reached from Dhaka without transiting a country for which a Bangladeshi passport holder needs a visa.
Is Sri Lanka visa-free for Bangladeshi citizens?
No. Sri Lanka requires an Electronic Travel Authorisation approved before travel, and it ended visa on arrival in October 2025, so you cannot obtain entry at Colombo airport without prior approval. Bangladeshi travellers pay the reduced SAARC rate of USD 20 rather than the standard USD 50, and the ETA is issued for 30 days with double entry. Apply only at eta.gov.lk; third-party sites charge several times the official fee for the same application.
Can Bangladeshi passport holders get a UAE visa on arrival?
Not on an ordinary Bangladeshi passport. A pre-arranged tourist visa is mandatory, obtained through an airline, a licensed travel agency or a UAE-based sponsor before you fly, and health insurance covering the stay is required. The single exception is for travellers who already hold a valid residence permit or visa from certain other countries, which can qualify them for visa on arrival — so if you hold a GCC, US, UK or Schengen residence permit, check that specific rule.
Do I need a transit visa to reach visa-free countries?
Usually, yes — and this is the detail that most visa-free country lists leave out. Almost every Caribbean and Pacific destination on a Bangladeshi passport's visa-free list is reached via the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union or the Gulf, and a Bangladeshi passport holder needs a visa to enter those transit countries. A visa-free destination is only useful if you can legally reach it, so always plan the transit leg before treating a destination as visa-free.
How often do these visa rules change?
Frequently, and without much notice. Bangladesh's index position moved from 95th in January 2026 to 97th by July 2026, and Sri Lanka replaced visa on arrival with a mandatory online ETA in October 2025. Always confirm the current requirement with the destination's own immigration authority or its embassy in Dhaka before booking anything non-refundable.
How this list was verified
Every rule on this page was cross-checked against the destination's immigration authority, embassy guidance and international passport indexing. Visa rules change often and rarely with notice, so confirm the current requirement on the destination's own immigration site or at its embassy in Dhaka before you book anything non-refundable. URAL does not process visa applications or issue visas.
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