A Tanzania visa is the first thing every safari traveller has to arrange, and it is also where most of the online confusion and overpaying happens. The official fee is USD 50 for a single-entry tourist visa, but a crowd of look-alike websites charge far more for the same document. This guide explains how the Tanzania visa and e-visa work in November 2026: the official portal and how to spot a fake one, the fees for each visa type, who pays the higher fee, how to apply step by step, what you need to upload, how long it takes, whether you can still get a visa on arrival, how Zanzibar fits in and the new insurance and health-form rules that now sit beside the visa. People search for it as Tanzania visa, Tanzania e-visa, Tanzania eVisa application, Tanzania visa on arrival, Tanzania tourist visa, Tanzania visa fee, Tanzania visa for US citizens, how to apply for a Tanzania visa and do I need a visa for Tanzania.
Quick answer
Most visitors need a Tanzania tourist visa, and the cheapest and safest way to get it is to apply online at the official government portal, visa.immigration.go.tz, where a single-entry visa costs USD 50 and is valid for a stay of up to 90 days. Citizens of the United States must apply for the multiple-entry visa at USD 100. A multiple-entry visa costs USD 100 for everyone else who wants it and is valid for up to one year, with up to 90 days per visit.
Visa on arrival is still available at the main ports of entry for a single-entry visa, but the UK and Canadian governments both advise applying online first. The East Africa Tourist Visa does not cover Tanzania. Many countries are visa-exempt, so check your nationality on the official list. Since 1 October 2026 you also need the government's inbound travel insurance, and since 17 October 2026 an online health form.
Tanzania visa at a glance
| Item | What to know |
|---|---|
| Official portal | visa.immigration.go.tz (the address ends in .go.tz) |
| Single-entry tourist visa | USD 50, stay of up to 90 days |
| Multiple-entry visa | USD 100, valid up to one year, up to 90 days per visit |
| US citizens | Must apply for the multiple-entry visa at USD 100 |
| Business single entry | USD 250 |
| Transit visa | USD 30, 7 days (some embassy pages say up to 14) |
| Passport | Valid at least 6 months, with at least one unused page |
| Processing | Most applications within ten days; apply early |
| Visa on arrival | Available at main ports for a single-entry visa |
| East Africa Tourist Visa | Does not cover Tanzania |
| Insurance | Mandatory inbound policy since 1 October 2026 |
| Health form | Online form mandatory since 17 October 2026 |
Chapter 01: What is the official Tanzania e-visa portal?
The official site is run by Tanzania Immigration Services at visa.immigration.go.tz. The UK Foreign Office and the Canadian government both point travellers to that address, and the portal's own guidelines page tells applicants to apply only through the official immigration website and not through other online links. An older address, eservices.immigration.go.tz, appears on a 2020 embassy notice, and both sit under immigration.go.tz.
The simple test is the ending of the address. A genuine government site ends in .go.tz. Several commercial sites with names that include "evisa" and "tanzania" rank high in search results, and none of them is a government domain. They do not issue the visa themselves. They file the same form on your behalf and add a service charge, and the sums they ask are often a multiple of the USD 50 official fee. If you want help, ask your operator, who can check your form before you submit it.
Chapter 02: What are the visa types and fees?
The portal publishes a short fee table. An ordinary single-entry tourist visa costs USD 50 and allows a stay of up to 90 days. A multiple-entry visa costs USD 100 and is valid for up to one year, with up to 90 days per visit. A business single-entry visa costs USD 250 for up to 90 days. A transit visa costs USD 30 for up to seven days, and some embassy pages give 14 days for a double-entry transit, so check the grant notice.
For most safari travellers the single-entry visa at USD 50 is the right one. Choose the multiple-entry visa only if you plan to leave Tanzania and re-enter it within the same trip, for example a safari in Kenya between two Tanzania legs.
Chapter 03: Why do US citizens pay USD 100?
The portal states that US passport holders must apply for the multiple-entry visa, so a US citizen pays USD 100 even for a single trip. The earlier US Embassy page gives the same figure. No other nationality-specific tourist fee is published on the portal. Check your own country's fee when you apply, because the form shows the amount before you pay.
Chapter 04: Which nationalities do not need a visa?
Dozens of countries are visa-exempt. A Tanzanian High Commission list names 69 countries and territories, including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan, but it carries no date and no stay length. A public source adds that Angola was added in April 2025. Because the official exemption list is not published in a dated, easily read form on the portal, treat any list on a third-party site as a starting point, and confirm your nationality with the nearest Tanzanian embassy or with us before you travel.
Chapter 05: How do you apply for the e-visa, step by step?
- Open visa.immigration.go.tz and read the guidelines page.
- Create the application and fill in the personal, passport and travel details. Choose your first destination, such as the mainland or Zanzibar.
- Upload a copy of the passport photo page and a passport-style photo.
- Upload a return or onward ticket.
- Pay by Visa or Mastercard.
- Keep the application ID. Use it to check the status and to download the grant notice.
- Print the grant notice and carry it with your passport.
Each traveller needs a separate application, children included. A grant notice does not guarantee entry, and an immigration officer will still ask to see your return ticket.
Chapter 06: What documents and photo rules apply?
The portal asks for a copy of the passport photo page, a return ticket, the completed form and declaration, and proof of payment. The passport should be valid for at least six months from your arrival and have at least one unused page, according to the UK and Canadian pages. One travel agency quotes two blank pages, so give yourself two to be safe.
The photo must be in colour on a plain background, in JPG or JPEG format, no larger than 500 KB and no larger than 45 by 35 millimetres. Proof of accommodation is not listed as a requirement on the official page. A yellow fever certificate is not an upload, but it is a condition of entry for some arrivals, which Chapter 11 explains.
Chapter 07: How long does processing take?
The portal says most applications are processed within ten days, and that applications referred for extra checks take longer, so apply up to two months ahead if you can. Commercial guides say three to ten working days, with most decisions in four to six. Plan for the longer end of the range and apply at least two weeks before you fly, and earlier in July to October and December, when more people apply.
The e-visa system has gone offline at times. The immigration service scheduled maintenance on 31 January 2026 and announced a technical incident on 4 March 2026, and on both occasions said visa on arrival remained available. If the system is down, wait and try again, and do not pay a third party.
Chapter 08: Can you still get a visa on arrival?
Yes. The UK and Canadian governments both say a single-entry visa is available on arrival at the main ports of entry, including the international airports. The UK adds that a multiple-entry visa is not available on arrival, and Canada says stays over 90 days or multiple entries need an e-visa. The immigration department said in November 2024 that visa on arrival had not been stopped, although it encourages online applications.
Applying online is still the better choice. You avoid queues at the airport, you know your approval before you fly, and you have the grant notice if a check-in desk asks for proof of entry. If you do pay on arrival, carry US dollars in cash in case a card machine is down.
Chapter 09: How does Zanzibar fit in?
One Tanzania visa covers both the mainland and Zanzibar. You do not apply for a separate Zanzibar visa and the portal does not list a separate Zanzibar fee. The form lets you choose a first destination. Zanzibar does have its own insurance scheme, run by the Zanzibar Insurance Corporation, which has applied since 1 October 2024. The UK says you buy insurance once, at your first port of entry, from the Zanzibar Insurance Corporation if you land in Zanzibar first, or from the National Insurance Corporation if you land on the mainland first. The insurance rules are in our mandatory travel insurance guide, and the island is covered in where to stay in Zanzibar.
Chapter 10: Does the East Africa Tourist Visa cover Tanzania?
No. The East Africa Tourist Visa covers Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda. Tanzania is not part of it and needs its own visa. If you combine Tanzania with the other three countries, apply for the Tanzania visa separately, as our East Africa tourist visa guide explains, and see our visa requirements guide for the five destinations side by side.
Chapter 11: What about yellow fever, insurance and the health form?
Three more rules sit beside the visa.
A yellow fever certificate is required if you arrive from, or pass through, a country with a risk of yellow fever. Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda are on commercial lists of such countries, and Tanzania's Ministry of Health holds the official list. Carry the certificate in your hand luggage. Our yellow fever certificate guide explains who needs one.
Since 1 October 2026, foreign visitors to the mainland must buy the government's inbound travel insurance at USD 44 for an adult, valid for up to 92 days. Residents of EAC and SADC member states are exempt. The policy does not replace your own policy.
Since 17 October 2026, all arrivals by air, land and sea complete an online health surveillance form, and the US Embassy advises doing so within 24 hours before arrival and keeping the QR code. Anyone without it completes it at the airport, with delays.
Chapter 12: What happens at the airport?
You hand over your passport, the grant notice, your return ticket and the health form QR code. Immigration queues at Kilimanjaro can take 20 to 45 minutes at peak times, and flights often arrive off schedule. Cash declaration is mandatory for USD 10,000 or more. Drones need a Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority permit. Our Kilimanjaro Airport arrival guide walks through the terminal, and our Tanzania safety guide covers the other entry rules.
Chapter 13: What mistakes should you avoid?
Paying a look-alike site, applying with a passport that has less than six months' validity, choosing the multiple-entry visa when you do not need it, applying the day before you fly, forgetting that a US passport pays USD 100, assuming the East Africa Tourist Visa covers Tanzania, skipping the insurance and the health form, and forgetting that each child needs an application.
Chapter 14: What is the verdict?
Apply on visa.immigration.go.tz, pay USD 50 (or USD 100 if you hold a US passport), and do it two to four weeks before you fly. Keep the grant notice, the return ticket and the health form QR code together with your passport.
Tell us your dates and nationality, and we will check that your visa, insurance and health form are in order before you fly, and send a written quotation for your safari. See our Tanzania destination page and tours such as our Tanzania grand migration explorer and our Tanzania and Zanzibar beach week.
Tell us your nationality and travel dates, and we will reply within 24 hours with the visa steps for your passport and a written quotation for your safari.
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