Montenegro will introduce visa requirements for citizens of Belarus, China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye on 1 November 2026 as part of its alignment with European Union policy.
The change could have a significant effect on tourism. Visitors residing in Russia, Türkiye, China and Belarus—the four markets for which separate statistics are available—recorded 427,106 arrivals and 3.23 million overnight stays in 2025. This represented 21.9% of all nights spent by foreign tourists.
Russia is the most important of these markets, accounting for 2.41 million nights. Turkish visitors generated around 640,000, while travellers from China and Belarus contributed approximately 115,000 and 60,000 respectively.
The effect will depend largely on how easy it is to obtain a visa. Applications can already be submitted through VFS Global centres in Russia and Türkiye, while centres are planned for the other affected countries. Montenegro is also developing an electronic visa system, although no launch date has been confirmed.
Processing can take ten days under standard procedures, but may be extended to 30 or 60 days. Such delays could discourage short holidays, business trips and spontaneous travel.
Clear fees, documentation requirements, processing times and application-centre locations will therefore be crucial before the new regime takes effect.
