Business Visas
Visas are required for entry into Lebanon and may be obtained at Lebanese embassies and consulates. Citizens of the following countries can obtain an entry visa upon the arrival at the Beirut International Airport: Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Czech Republic, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Great Britain, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Macau (S A R), Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Palau, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Romania, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Samoa, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey (exclusively at the airport), Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, USA, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Yugoslavia.
Travelers whose passports contain Israeli stamps or visas are routinely refused entry at the airport. If holders of Arab passports possess passports that contain Israeli stamps or visas, they may be subject to arrest and imprisonment. Persons, including dual national Lebanese, suspected of having traveled to or via Israel may also be subject to interrogation or detention.
U.S. companies that require travel of foreign businesspersons to the United States should be advised that security evaluations are handled via an interagency process. Visa applicants should go to the following links.
Travel Advisories
Lebanon is one of several countries for which the U.S. Department of State has issued Travel Warnings because of long-term, protracted conditions that make a country dangerous or unstable. U.S. companies and visitors are advised to assess carefully the situation in Lebanon by consulting the Department’s Travel Warning and its Consular Information Sheet. These documents contain essential security and safety information on travel to Lebanon.
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is an important anti-corruption tool designed to discourage corrupt business practices in favor of free and fair markets. The FCPA prohibits promising, offering, giving or authorizing giving anything of value to a foreign government official where the purpose is to obtain or retain business. These prohibitions apply to U.S. persons, both individuals and companies, and companies that are listed on U.S. exchanges. The statute also requires companies publicly traded in the U.S. to keep accurate books and records and implement appropriate internal controls.
More information on the FCPA can be found here.
A party to a transaction seeking to know whether a proposed course of conduct would violate the FCPA can take advantage of the opinion procedure established by the statue. Within 30 days of receiving a description of a proposed course of conduct in writing, the Attorney General will provide the party with a written opinion on whether the proposed conduct would violate the FCPA. Not only do opinions provide the requesting party with a rebuttable presumption that the conduct does not violate the FCPA, but DOJ publishes past opinions which can provide guidance for other companies facing similar situations.