Surfeet Border Crossing, Surfeet, Yemen-Oman Border Crossing, Adventures of Nicole

Crossing the Yemen–Oman Border at Surfeet

Updated February 2026, Crossing the Yemen-Oman Border was originally written in April 2020

The Yemen-Oman border crossing at Surfeet (also spelled Sarfait) connects Oman’s Dhofar Governorate with Yemen’s Al Mahrah Governorate. For travelers already in Yemen, it is possible to cross from Yemen into Oman here with the required documents and local arrangements.

However, the rules for entering Yemen from Oman have changed. Since March 2024, foreign travelers have not been permitted to enter Yemen through the Oman land border crossings. The Surfeet crossing can still be used to exit Yemen into Oman, but you cannot currently use it to travel from Oman into Yemen.

I crossed the Yemen-Oman border at Surfeet and have put together the practical details below, including getting to the border from Salalah, exiting Oman, entering Yemen, the Yemeni visa approval process, and what to expect at the crossing.

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Can you Cross the Yemen-Oman border?

Not from Oman into Yemen as a foreign traveler. Since March 2024, foreign travelers have not been permitted to enter Yemen through the Oman land border crossings at Surfeet/Sarfait or Shihan/Al Mazyunah.

You can cross from Yemen into Oman, provided you have the necessary documents and are permitted to exit Yemen.

Yemen Visa Approval Letter for the Oman Border

Socotra Visa Approval, Yemen Visa Approval, Adventures of Nicole

When the Surfeet border was being used for entry into Yemen, foreign travelers needed to arrange a Yemeni visa approval letter before reaching the border. The approval letter was obtained through a local fixer in Yemen, who submitted a passport scan to the Ministry of Tourism.

The approval process took around two weeks based on my experience. Once approved, the letter needed to be printed and presented at the border along with your passport.

Important: The Surfeet crossing is no longer available for foreign travelers entering Yemen from Oman, so the procedure described above is historical rather than a current way to enter Yemen.

Heading to Socotra? learn how to get a visa for Socotra & Yemen

How to Get to the Yemen-Oman Border from Salalah

Mughsail Beach, Salalah, Dhofar, Yemen, Adventures of Nicole

The Surfeet/Sarfait border crossing is roughly 2 hours 20 minutes by road from Salalah, depending on border traffic and stops. The drive through Dhofar is one of the more dramatic parts of the journey, with the road climbing over the coastal mountains before descending toward the border.

If you need transportation to the border, you’ll need to arrange a private vehicle. A local driver can also take you to the border as part of a trip through western Dhofar.

If you need a ride to the border, or are looking to visit Yemen as a day trip (I can’t fathom going to this effort for a day trip, but many a stamp collector have made the journey for it), I can put you in contact with Azam, who can arrange this for you.

Read about our experience camping under the stars in the Yemeni Empty Quarter

Exiting Oman at Surfeet Border

The Oman side of the Surfeet border crossing is relatively straightforward. You stop at the border gate and present your passport to immigration, where your exit from Oman is processed and your passport is stamped.

Spending time in Oman? Plan your trip with my Oman Travel Guide
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Entering Yemen from Oman at Surfeet

This is the part of the crossing that has changed. Foreign travelers are currently not permitted to enter Yemen from Oman through Surfeet/Sarfait.

When I crossed in 2020, however, the process was to drive through the gate into Yemen, then take my passport and Yemeni visa approval letter to border control. I also paid a $150 USD visa fee at the border.

Exploring the Al Mahrah region of Yemen? Read the Al Mahrah Travel Guide

Surfeet Border to Hawf, Yemen

Hawf, Al Mahrah, Yemen, Adventures of Nicole

When I crossed the border, Hawf was about a 20-minute drive from the Yemeni border control office. The small fishing village sits along the coast in Al Mahrah Governorate. From Hawf, it was approximately another 1 hour 45 minutes by road to Al Ghaydah.

How to Leave Yemen for Oman

If you are already in Yemen, one option is to leave overland through an Oman border crossing, including Surfeet/Sarfait or Shihan/Al Mazyunah, subject to current border requirements and permissions.

Another option is to leave Yemen by air. Flight availability changes, so check current schedules and local arrangements before relying on a particular route.

Other Yemen-Oman Border Crossing Information

There is a northern border crossing connecting the Omani and Yemen Empty Quarter at Al Mazyunah, Oman and Shihan, Yemen. This border is open to foreigners, however, you can only exit Yemen and enter into Oman here. They will not let you across the opposite direction.
Plan to exit Oman and enter Yemen on the same passport. When I crossed the Yemen-Oman border in 2020, I had entered Oman on my US passport and had applied for my Yemeni approval letter and Yemeni visa under my Italian passport. On arrival in Yemen, the Yemeni officials checked for the Omani exit stamps and did not find one in my passport. I then handed over my US passport to show that my Omani exit stamps were in there. At first, they said that I had to exit and enter on the same passport and that they’d have to put my Yemeni visa in my US passport. After a little arguing back and forth they finally decided to just put my visa in my Italian passport. A dual Canadian/US passport holder was with us and had done the very same as I and had the same issue. In the end, it was just a minor incident, but worth noting. I’d advise exiting one and entering the other on the same passport to avoid potential problems.
Travelers that enter Yemen (as well as Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Syria) will no longer be eligible for the ESTA visa waiver program in the US. Otherwise, I am unaware of any other issues that a Yemeni visa may pose, aside from secondary questioning when arriving into some countries.
To get out of Yemen, you have two options. One would be to cross back over the Yemen-Oman border, either at the southern crossing at Surfeet, or the northern crossing at Shihan-Al Mazyunah. The other would be by flight from Seiyun. On Wednesdays, there’s a flight that stops in Seiyun from Cairo and continues onto Socotra (many travelers who visit Mainland Yemen do continue onto Socotra afterward), or later in the day on Wednesdays you can catch the flight from Seiyun to Cairo on its return from Socotra.
You’ll need to have a local fixer/guide in Yemen as mentioned previously, as it is required in order to secure a visa, as well as to travel around the country (you would most likely be stopped at a checkpoint and deported if you attempted to anyway). If you want to arrange a trip to the Mainland of Yemen with our local partner Kais, please reach out to organize trips to Yemen.