East African tourist visa

East African tourist visa for Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya

East African tourist visa – Exploring east Africa has become something easy due to the introduction of the East African tourist visa which is cost friendly to all travelers.  Currently you can use the East African tourist Visa to access Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya.

The the East African Tourist Visa was agreed upon by the three different heads of Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda and the main purpose is to increase on the tourism opportunities as well as improve on service delivery in the tourism industry. The East African tourist visa allows to get around with in three countries that is Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya and it takes ninety days before expiring and it is not accepted in other countries apart from the above mentioned. In the near future its hoped that Burundi, Tanzania, Congo and South Sudan will agree on the same visa.

How does one apply for the east African tourist visa?

Applying for the East African visa can either be manual or online application. The application forms can be got from the different immigration offices or the international airport of the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda or the Republic on Uganda.

Acquiring the East African tourist visa in Uganda

The East African visa in Uganda can easily be acquired at Entebbe international airport, you can apply online or manually at the Uganda embassy.  If travelers choose Uganda as their starting point then they can ask for it on arrival and the process at Entebbe international airport is easy, takes little time due to the fact that there is no need of filling forms online, no passport photos needed and there are no mailing fees involved. Rather travelers need to present their yellow fever card which will be asked on arrival.  For more information regarding visa application online in Uganda you can visit the consular local website of the Ugandan Embassy.

Acquiring the tourist visa in Kenya

If travelers choose to begin their safari from Kenya then they will get visa application information from the consular local embassy website of Kenya. For Kenya you will have to acquire the visa a day before you enter Kenya however this doesn’t guarantee free entry and access to Kenya, you will need other travel documents which will be asked by the authorities.

Acquiring tourist visa in Rwanda

If travelers choose to start the trip from Rwanda then they can find the application forms on the consular local embassy website of Rwanda. You will fill in the forms online and follow the prompts of filling in the required information. The tourist visa processing should be done a day before you get into Rwanda and this is a mandatory.

Requirement needed while applying for a visa

A recent colored passport sized photo in and white and black background. Your passport photo should exclude head wraps, glasses or caps.

You will have to fill the application letter and submit to the country embassy you going to visit.

 The East African tourist visa application fees costs 100 USD and this is needed after filling the visa application forms of the East African tourist visa and it is important to note that the visa is a single entry.

The visa application will require the individual in need of the visa to another country and once issued to traveler, it will last after six months and it is restricted to only three countries. However any other travel documents can be allowed provided they are eligible.

Who is eligible for the east African tourist visa and which type of visa?

Every traveler qualifies for the East African tourist visa regardless of their origin and these are categorized as follows.

The nationals or East African citizens

The nationals are the east African citizens of Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya. These stand a great advantage of using their national IDs as their travel document to access other fellow East African countries. However national ID cards as a traveler document lasts for only 6 months thus easing travel for the east African citizens.

The students

Students are also allowed to use their national ID cards as their travel document in any of the east African countries. Students normally travel for research, studies as well as leisure therefore as long they have their national IDs then accessing other east African countries becomes easy.

The Expatriates

These are visitors in the country that have traveled for contract works in a specific country and they have stayed there for a long time to an extend that they have acquired a secondary citizenship. The expatriates have been exempted from applying for a tourist visa thus they can use their inter-state pass as they visa to travel in the three east African countries. However this expires after 6 months which is equivalent to 90 days and for expatriates to be issued the inter-pass they will have to use their valid residents permit.

For travelers who have acquired an East African visa, they are free to move in the three East African countries without any limitations and there is no need of paying for return once they are done with the activities that that took them in the respective countries. However once they travel to countries that are not part of the east African community then they will have to pay.

The East African tourist visa gives access to visit all the tourist attractions and also take part in any tourism activity of your interest in any of three countries at an extra charge. We advise expatriates to use tour operators assist them organize their safari package according to interested activities they would like to enjoy although they have to note the following;

Tourists’ attractions and activities have to be booked or organized by your trusted tour operator to suite your interest therefore these are not found in fixed arrangements. Most of the activities need advance booking before you travel to the destination in which they are found.

Travelers should take note of the yellow fever vaccination card as an important document that will be asked in all the three countries even if you have a tourist visa. This implies that even travelers have a tourist but without the yellow fever vaccination card, they won’t be allowed access to other East African countries.

At border entry of the three countries, the officials need to record your entry and exist out of the country. Thus they will ask for return ticket do as to keep proper records and to avoid illegal stay in their country.

It is important to note that the application for the visa will require two days so as to be processed and to countries like Kenya, this is taken serious.

In short, the online application of a tourist visa gives some hiccups but it has played a big part to improve on the tourism services in the three countries as well as developing a good relationship among the three countries. In the nearby future there is hope that other countries will join so as to easy access on the tourism attractions and activities with in other countries.