Re: Your Visa Requirements

Attention travelers!

December 23, 2010:

At this point in the game, you may consider just doing your visa on arrival. The cost will be around $50. This is not included in the registration price. I also highly advise bringing 2 - 4 passport sized photos, and photocopies of your passport, and exact change in US dollars, to ease the process on arrival. Remember that your passport must be valid for an additional six months past the trip time!

FOR KENYA:

Don't forget to prepare and get your visa. The Visa fee to Kenya is expected to go up from $25 to $50 effective January 1st. Visas on arrival at the airport are possible, but can cause some delay. Here are links with some more information:

and

From http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1151.html#entry_require... ...

ENTRY / EXIT REQUIREMENTS: A passport and visa are required. Visas may be obtained in advance, although airport visas are available for U.S. citizens. Travelers who opt to obtain an airport visa should expect delays upon arrival. There is a fee for the visa, whether obtained in advance or at the airport. Evidence of yellow fever immunization may be requested. Travelers to Kenya and neighboring African countries should ensure that the validity of their passports is at least six months beyond the end of their intended stay, and that their passport contains sufficient blank pages for visas and immigration stamps.

Travelers may obtain the latest information on visas as well as any additional details regarding entry requirements from the Embassy of Kenya, 2249 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008, telephone (202) 387-6101, or the Kenyan Consulates General in Los Angeles and New York City. Persons outside the United States should contact the nearest Kenyan embassy or consulate. Visit the web site for the Embassy of Kenya for the most current visa information.

FOR RWANDA:

A free 90-day visa will be granted to citizens from the USA, the UK, Germany, Sweden, Hong
Kong, South Africa, Mauritius, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Re-
public of Congo.

Other nationals are required to purchase a visa. The first option is to apply at a Rwandan
embassy or diplomatic mission where processing is usually efficient and takes less than a
week (frequently as little as two days). Costs are USD 60 plus a handling fee – please check
for the exact amount on the respective website of the embassy or diplomatic mission. Alterna-
tively, foreign nationals can fill an “entry facility document” online and then obtain a visa upon
arrival at Kigali airport or an overland border post (please note that the entry facility document
is mandatory and you can be refused entry into Rwanda if you do not carry such a docu-
ment!). This costs USD 60, to be paid at the airport or border, and is valid for a single entry
and 15 days. All information and the download link for the entry facility document itself are
available at www.migration.gov.rw/services.php#visa. For stays of more than 15 days or for
multiple entries, an additional 90-day visa can be obtained after arrival from the Immigration
authorities in Kigali. The costs for this are RWF 25,000, i.e. a bit less than USD 50.

Passports must be valid for at least 6 months beyond the date you plan to leave Rwanda.

Please contact ila@halfsky.org if you have more questions!
thanks,
ila