Tanzania visa requirements

Most visitors do. The exceptions, according to Tanzania Immigration Services, are citizens of the East African Community member states, of the SADC member states except Comoros, and of Commonwealth countries, with seven exceptions: the United Kingdom, Canada, Nigeria, India, Pakistan, Australia and New Zealand. Citizens of those seven need a visa.

Exemptions are set by the government and can change. If your nationality is borderline, check the current list on the immigration portal before you travel rather than relying on any third-party summary, including this one.

Zanzibar is part of the United Republic of Tanzania, so the same visa covers Unguja and Pemba. Zanzibar does, however, add its own insurance requirement (below).

Tanzania issues six types of visa. For a holiday, almost everyone needs the Ordinary Visa. The exception is holders of United States passports, who must apply for the Multiple Entry Visa even if they are only entering once.

An ordinary visa is for tourism and visiting only. It does not permit work or business. For a short professional assignment you need the business visa; for anything longer than three months, a work or residence permit.

There are two ways to get a visa: apply online before you travel, or buy one on arrival at an official entry point. The immigration service recommends applying online.

Apply through the government portal at visa.immigration.go.tz. Search results for “Tanzania visa” include private agencies that charge a service fee on top of the government fee; the official address ends in .go.tz.

Every passport holder needs their own application, including children travelling on a parent's booking. You fill in the form, upload a colour passport photo and a copy of your passport's data page, then pay by Visa or Mastercard. The photo must have a plain background, show your full face, and be no larger than 500 KB.

Applications are normally processed within ten days. Once submitted, an application can't be edited; if your dates change afterwards, contact the immigration service. You must also be able to show a return ticket on arrival.

Most nationalities can still buy a visa at the airport or border. Applying online first means a shorter queue and no surprises.

Nationals of the following countries cannot get a visa on arrival and must apply in advance, unless they hold special permission from the Commissioner General of Immigration: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Chad, Eritrea, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Iran, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Yemen. The same applies to stateless people and refugees.

These are “referral” cases, which take longer. The immigration service advises applying at least two months before travel and not paying for flights or accommodation until the visa is approved.

Tanzania requires proof of yellow fever vaccination from travellers aged one year or older who arrive from a country with a risk of yellow fever transmission. According to the US CDC, this includes airport transits longer than 12 hours in such a country. If you fly directly from Europe or North America, you don't need a certificate.

Carry the certificate itself (the yellow International Certificate of Vaccination), not a photo of it.

Malaria is present throughout Tanzania below 1,800 metres, which includes the coast, Zanzibar and most of the safari parks. The CDC recommends antimalarial medication for these areas. See a travel clinic a few weeks before you leave.

Since 1 October 2024, every foreign visitor to Zanzibar must hold the government's own inbound travel insurance, issued by the state-owned Zanzibar Insurance Corporation. It costs USD 44 per adult, with a reduced rate for children, and is valid for 92 days.

It is required even if you already have your own travel insurance, and you buy it through the official Visit Zanzibar portal. It applies to Zanzibar only. Mainland Tanzania has no equivalent requirement.