Zimbabwe visa requirements: Everything you need to know

Zimbabwe Visa Requirements

Do I need a Zimbabwe visa as a tourist?

For most tourists, the good news is that the Zimbabwe visa process is fairly simple and doesn’t require much planning. There are three categories of nationalities, each of which have different visa requirements. I’ve summarised the categories below, as well as the visa application details for each. A list of useful official websites is included at the bottom of this article. Don’t forget to read the “Notes for all nationalities” at the bottom of this article, too.

Zimbabwe visa information

Countries in blue do not need a visa, countries in yellow need a visa on arrival, and countries in orange/red need a visa in advance. Map source.

Category A

This category comprises citizens of SADC countries as well as Hong Kong and Singapore. These nationalities do not need a visa to enter Zimbabwe for a holiday. When you show your passport upon arrival at the airport or border, you will be allowed to enter Zimbabwe without any fees or visa requirements (but read the section “Notes for all nationalities” at the end of this article for general Zimbabwe visa requirements).

Category B

Citizens of countries in this category do not need to apply for a visa in advance. They can get a Zimbabwe visa upon arrival in Zimbabwe. Countries in this category include United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland and USA (a full official list of Cat B countries is here). This category doesn’t require much planning or time: The visa application is done when your flight lands or your car crosses the border into Zimbabwe.

When you arrive at the airport arrivals hall or border post in Zimbabwe, you will be given an ‘Immigration Declaration Form’ to complete (it is not a long form; a sample of the form can be viewed here), and you will need to pay the visa fee in cash. (Take the exact change if possible; see my article on Using money in Zimbabwe).

There are no other visa requirements for this category, but read the section “Notes for all nationalities” at the end of this article for Zimbabwe visa requirements applicable to everyone.

  • Fees for most countries in Category B: Single Entry US$ 30; Double Entry US$ 45. Payable in cash; occasionally with Mastercard or Visa.
  • Fees for UK and Ireland Zimbabwe visas: Single Entry US$ 55; Double Entry US$ 70. Payable in cash; occasionally with Mastercard or Visa.
  • Fees for Canadian Zimbabwe visas: Single Entry US$ 75. Canadian Passport holders can only get a Single Entry Zimbabwe visa at the port of Entry, not a Multiple Entry Visa.

Category C

This category comprises citizens of countries such as India, Nigeria and Mexico (full list here). Citizens in Category C need to apply for a Zimbabwe visa before travelling to Zimbabwe. You can do this online at www.evisa.gov.zw (go to the ‘Apply’ tab). It takes two working days to obtain an e-visa. After completing the online form, you will be emailed a document to use upon arrival in Zimbabwe. The visa fee should be paid upon arrival in Zimbabwe. You need to apply for this at least three weeks before your travel date.

Fees for Category C Zimbabwe visas: Single Entry Visa: US$65 to US$100. Category C nationals can only get a Single Entry Zimbabwe Visa (not a Multiple Entry Visa).

Holiday Visa requirements for Category C nationals (official info here):

  • Completion of online visa form at evisa.gov.zw.
  • Two passport-sized colour photographs showing ears, no smiling.
  • Scanned colour photocopy of your passport, which must be valid for at least 6 months. If you live in a country that is different to your nationality, you will need to include a photocopy of your residence stamp or card. If you have previously visited Zimbabwe, include copies of previous Zimbabwe visas.
  • Proof of residence in your country of origin (e.g. a utilty bill or lease displaying your name and your address).
  • Address of hotel in Zimbabwe and scanned booking confirmation or a letter of invitation from a Zimbabwean host, signed with a signature in blue ink.
    • If using a letter of invitation, the letter should include the host’s address, full name and ID number, as well as your full name, ID number and dates of visit. You will also need colour scanned copies of the host’s proof of residence in form of current telephone bill or water bill.
  • Scanned colour photocopy of your ID if you have one.
  • Scanned colour photocopy of your previous Zimbabwe visa if you’ve had one.

Visa notes for all nationalities visiting Zimbabwe

  • Passport requirements for everyone: Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of arrival in Zimbabwe, and should have at least 3 blank pages left in it. You should have proof of onward/return tickets out of the country.
  • Top tip: Children and babies are charged full visa fees regardless of their age. You will of course need to bring your child’s passport with you. Officially you do not need to bring your child’s birth certificate but I would bring it anyway, as a precaution (see the note further down about travelling through South Africa with a child).
  • Declaring cash: If you enter the country with less than US $2000, and you don’t anticipate taking more than $2000 amount out the country, then you don’t need to use a special form to declare your cash. You can just write the amount of cash in the regular Immigration Declaration Form upon arrival. However, if you plan on taking more than US $2000 out of Zimbabwe, you will need to do the following: When arriving in Zimbabwe, go to Customs (red route), declare your cash in the blue Form 47 provided, and keep this form safe to display it to officials when departing Zimbabwe. (To see details of this form, you can view the PDF online by Googling “Zimra Form 47“).
  • Double Entry Visas: If you are leaving Zimbabwe and then returning again, even for a few hours, it is best to get a Double Entry Visa or Univisa. If you are staying in Zimbabwe and want to go to Botswana (Chobe), for example, a Double Entry visa will be cheaper than getting a single-entry visa twise.
  • KAZA Univisa: If you’re travelling back and forth between Zimbabwe and Zambia, you can get a KAZA Univisa visa which costs US $50 and is valid for 30 days. It allows multiple entries between the two countries of Zimbabwe and Zambia. You can buy up to 3 Univisas per year. If you arrive in Zimbabwe and are planning to go to Zambia for a day trip, it makes sense to purchase a Univisa instead of a double entry visa because it is cheaper and more flexibile. It can be purchased at Harare International Airport, Victoria Falls International Airport, Victoria Falls land border, and Kazungula land border). Most Category A and B citizens can buy a Univisa upon arrival. See  official www.kazavisa.info for details (also see info on VictoriaFallsGuide).
  • Multiple Entry Visas: If you are returning to Zimbabwe more than twice in one trip, you can apply for a Multiple Entry Visa. This cannot be done at your point of entry. You will need to apply for it at the Town Hall in Zimbabwe, or the Zimbabwe High Commission in your country.
  • Length of time for a Zimbabwe holiday visa: Holiday visas can be used within three months from the date of issue (see the Zim eVisa website), and they are issued for a 30-day stay. If you wish to stay in Zimbabwe for longer than 30 days, you can extend the visa at a consulate office without too much fuss if you’re a Category B citizen. A reader from New Zealand says: The immigration office in Harare (Herbert Chitepo Avenue) is clearly signposted about 100 metres along from the US embassy on the opposite side. A month after we arrived in Zimbabwe we turned up at the immigration building. Just had to fill in another immigration form – the same one as at the airport – and then went into the next room to submit it to the immigration officer who stamped it and gave us another 30 days no questions asked (took all of 15 minutes with no queues). You can get two free extensions up to three months. From three to six months it costs US$20 per month. Any extension seven months and more is US$100 per month. There is a three day grace period from the visa expiry date.
  • Important note on flights via South Africa with children: If you are travelling from, or via, South Africa with children, ensure you are acquainted with the 2015 South African entry requirements which includes needing to show their birth certificate (here’s a link to official UK travel advice for SA). The South African Department of Home Affairs have confirmed that no supporting documents will be required by people in direct transit through a South African International Airport. However, to be on the safe side, I would advise that it would be best to travel with your child’s birth certificate, as well as a letter from the other parent if you are travelling without them.
  • Other types of visas: This article discusses tourist visa information; however see the e-visa website for guidance on alternative types of visa, such as Zimbabwe Business Visas, Transit Visas and Conferencing Visas (more info on the Zimbabwe eVisa website).

Useful Zimbabwe visa websites and contact information

(Last updated July 2021)

Make sure you also read the Zimbabwe travel quick reference guide

You may also be interested in the following articles on related Zimbabwe topics:

FAQs about visiting Zimbabwe, Africaweather in zimbabwe africaFlights to Zimbabwe AfricaTransport in Zimbabwe AfricaHealth information for visitors to ZimbabweSafety in Zimbabwe Africa What to pack for a Zimbabwe holidayTips visitors Zimbabwe cash crisis Best places to visit in Zimbabwe

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Beth is the founder and chief writer of Great Zimbabwe Guide Travel Blog. Practical Zimbabwe travel advice since 2010.

23 Responses

  1. Daphne

    Hi Beth, you mean you can access to the website https://www.evisa.gov.zw/home ? Because we can’t access from here. I had emailed them since last week but no response from them also. No idea what’s going on there. Regards, Daphne

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hi Daphne, yes, I can view the website fine from the UK at the moment. Sorry to hear of the access problems on your side. Hope they respond to you soon. All the best, Beth

  2. Daphne

    Hi, we tried to visit the website for visa application, but it seems the website was down since last month, do u have any idea? Please advise and thanks.

  3. Callum

    Hiya,

    I am travelling to Zim in September and planning on extending my visa to the 6 months mark. After I will be returning to the UK but was wondering if you know if there is a duration of time I have to wait before being able to go back to Zim and extend another visa to 6 months?

  4. Brittany

    Hello! Can you give me a better idea on how much space Zimbabwe requires you to have in your passport for this visa? I have seen reports of everything from one single page, to two pages, to two pages adjoining. I have plenty of single pages, but only one set of blank pages facing each other and I need to save that for south Africa!

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hi Brittany, the actual visa sticker takes up 1 page. However the official requirement is that 3 pages be remaining in your passport. Please see the points under the heading “Visa notes for all nationalities visiting Zimbabwe” in the article above.

  5. Augustin Njong FONSO NGUFOR

    Hi,
    I don’t know if this channel will be of help to my problem. I applied for an evisa to zimbabwe on 11/12 /18 with reference Number A0260457. Yesterday an email was sent to me stating my application process is pending awaiting payment. Meanwhile payment was done and a confirmatory letter was sent as proof of payment. I don’t know who gonna help me. I write to the immigration they don’t reply, call and they don’t answer. I’m really confused.

  6. Victor

    Hi Beth,

    great bog, it’s very useful! My wife and I (both German) will be staying for three nights in Victoria Falls, so we can get the $30 Visa, right? Do you know anything about the departure tax at Victoria Falls Airport? I’ve read somewhere that you have to $50 to be able to leave the country again? If so, do you know where exactly we have to pay that tax?

    Keep up the brilliant work!

    All the best,

    Victor

  7. Siel

    Hi Beth, thank you for making all these information available to potential visitors, very helpful and insightful.

    Can I kindly ask, do you know if Category C Passport holders, with Green Card (residents of the United States) are able to obtain visa on arrival to Zimbabwe? Thanks for the help.

      • Siel

        Thank you, I have emailed them with no response as of yet, will share with you when I hear back, perhaps can be helpful to others too. Appreciate your response. Thanks

  8. Dave Price

    Hi Beth,

    We are travelling to VIctoria Falls at the end of April, staying 3 nights in Vic Falls, 1 night in Chobe and 4 nights in Zambia (David Livingstone Lodge). We plan to buy (US$50 cash) KAZA visas (Australian and NZ passports) which will cover Zimbabwe and Zambia. However does our trip to Chobe (overnight) mean that we would have to purchase additional KAZA visas when we return to Zambia via Zimbabwe?

    Kind Regards
    Dave

  9. Clair

    Hi Beth
    I grew up in Zim but left in 1999. I return annually with my (British) family and love your blog, always great ideas as the country changes from what I knew. They love it as much as I do, and with recent changes in politics we are considering moving there permanently. However I find official information really confusing on residence permits, are you able to, or aware of anyone who could give advice? Neither myself or parents were born there 🙁

  10. Francois Gerles

    Hello and many thanks for your precious information.

    I plan to arrive in Harare by plane but I’m not sure yet how I’ll get out of the country, probably overland to Botswana. Therefore, I’d prefer not to buy any return ticket.

    Do immigration officers at the Harare airport really request a proof of a return ticket and could refuse to deliver a visa? In that case, are there other kinds of proof than air tickets?

    Many thanks for your help

    Francois

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hello, Francois, I understand that you will be arriving as a Category A or B national. If this is the case, I have never been asked for a return ticket upon arrival. If you don’t have one, perhaps have a copy of a bank statement with you to show that you can afford a ticket if needed. If you’re a Category C national then you’ll be applying in advance and an onward itinerary will be necessary. All the best.

      • Great Zimbabwe Guide

        PS – If you had proof of accommodation in your next country you could also try show that as proof that you don’t intend to overstay in Zimbabwe.

  11. Sommes

    Hi Jess , great information . looking forward to your newsletter as am coming to zim in Dec. whats the situation regarding Zimbabweans holding Cat B passports? do they still have to pay for the visa or is the dual citizen thing sorted now?

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hello and thank you! The dual citizenship aspects hasn’t been implemented yet so anyone with a category B passport will need to pay the visa fee, irrespective of where they were born. – All the best, Beth.

  12. Christine Aird

    Hi Beth, We found your blog by accident, and have found the information it contains incredibly helpful for a trip we hope to take next year. However we are in a dilemma and I don’t know whether you can offer an unbiased opinion? We are based in UK and so require a category b visa, which will be issued at the arrival airport. My husband has a minor police record, and I am unsure how important this will prove to be. We hoped to find out before finalising our trip, and so I contacted the Zimbabwe embassy in London for clarification. The response I received stated that it was up to
    The Immigration Officer at the Port of Entry. If you regularly fly in to Zimbabwe, can you offer an opinion, as to whether this is an issue ? If you think there is anywhere else we could contact for further information that would be helpful as I am running out of ideas!

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hi Christine, thanks for the positive words, they are always appreciated. I’m afraid I don’t have a definitive answer to this one as I don’t have experience of it. When you arrive in the Zimbabwe airport, your husband will need to complete the Immigration Declaration Form. There is a section there asking whether the applicant has been convicted of a crime. I would imagine that minor issues would not be reason for denying a visa, but take any records with you. A sample form can be found here: http://thesafarisource.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Zimbabwe-Visa-Immigration-Form-2015.pdf. I would suggest that you ask your question to a wider group of people, such as the Facebook group ‘Zimbo birds in the UK’ as someone there may have had a similar experience in the past. All the best.

  13. Jess White

    Hi Beth

    I hope this email finds you well.

    I just wanted to send a quick message to let you know how helpful I found your blog!

    I actually grew up in Victoria Falls, but I am in my fourth year of university at Rhodes studying journalism.
    I recently started writing for the Victoria Falls Travel Guide, and I found you pages incredibly helpful when researching some of the articles 🙂

    Anyways, just a thank you from a fellow Zimbabwe lover!

    Hope you are having a good weekend and I look forward to reading more of your work!

    Kind Regards,
    Jess

    • Great Zimbabwe Guide

      Hi Jess,

      Thanks for the email and kind words! Your degree and job for the website sound great! I have read the VF guide and it has a wealth of info too. Let’s keep in touch!

      All the best,

      Beth