Maldives
The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an archipelagic country in South Asia, located in the Indian Ocean, near the southeastern boundary of the Arabian Sea. The Maldives is located southwest of India and Sri Lanka, about 750 kilometres from the Asian continent's mainland. Wikipedia
Cities
Cities with a full Wikivoyage guide, largest first.
Can I go? Entry and visas
From GOV.UK, for United Kingdom passports, updated 12 August 2026:
You will get a 30-day visa on arrival if you enter Maldives as a tourist.
If you intend to work in Maldives, you must get a work visa before you travel.
For further information on entry requirements and visas, contact the Maldives immigration department.
Passport validity
Your passport must have an ‘expiry date’ at least one month after the date you arrive in Maldives. Make sure your passport is not damaged or you may be stopped by immigration.
Check with your travel provider that your passport and other travel documents meet requirements. Renew your passport if you need to.
You will be denied entry if you do not have a valid travel document or try to use a passport that has been reported lost or stolen.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Your embassy in Maldives
Finding embassies…
For a lost passport, an arrest or an emergency.
Maldives's embassy in United Kingdom
Finding embassies…
For a visa before you go.
Entry rules change, sometimes overnight. Always confirm with the official source before you book or travel. This is a pointer, not legal advice.
Good to know
Emergency numbers in Maldives
- Currency
- Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR)
- Time
- UTC+5
- Tue 18:21 there now
- Plugs and power
- Types A, C, D, G, J · 230 V
- Driving
- On the left
- Calling code
- +960
- Languages
- Divehi
- English spoken by about 75%
- Capital
- Malé
From Wikidata, Unicode CLDR (currency, languages) and the IANA time zone database; checked 10 October 2026.