Visa policies are among the most important administrative formalities influencing international tourism flows. This study estimates a structural gravity model for tourism demand to quantify the effect of different types of visas. Furthermore, the effect of the monetary cost of the visa and changes in visa policies are evaluated. Thus, two novel databases on visa requirements are used. Our empirical analysis considers worldwide tourism movements, including domestic flows, from 194 origin countries to 163 destinations from 2016 to 2021. The results indicate that imposing visa requirements decreases international tourism movements, especially in developed countries, although the effect depends on the type of visa. Moreover, we find a low elasticity for the monetary cost of the visa. •We estimate a gravity model to analyze visa impacts on international tourism.•We consider worldwide bilateral tourism flows from 2016 to 2021.•Traditional visas yield a larger impact than more flexible electronic ones.•Visas have a larger impact in developed countries.•We estimate a significant but low elasticity for the monetary cost of the visa.