This page aims to outline the current document requirements that foreign citizens need to travel to Tanzania during the ongoing pandemic.
Tanzania currently has relatively lax COVID-19 travel restrictions in comparison to most countries. Nevertheless, some restrictions for international travelers still apply, and it is important to check the entry requirements for your nationality to avoid any problems on entry.
This page aims to outline the current document requirements that foreign citizens need to travel to Tanzania during the ongoing pandemic. You can also learn how to obtain any necessary documentation, including the Tanzania visa online, through electronic means.
Current COVID-19 travel restrictions for Tanzania
The majority of foreign citizens are permitted entry to the country as long as they meet the following requirements:
- Have a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test taken at most 72 hours before arrival.
- Take a COVID-19 antigen test upon arrival at their own expense
- Undergo medical screening on arrival
Airline crew are not required to take a coronavirus test on entry, but they are subject to the medical screening requirement. It is not necessary for the majority of arrivals to undergo quarantine on arrival.
However, some rules and restrictions remain in place. All passengers are currently required to complete a “Traveler's Surveillance Form" online. This must be submitted at least 24 hours before arrival in Tanzania.
Flights to Tanzania from India remain suspended due to the spread of a mutated strain of COVID-19 in the country, dubbed the ‘Delta’ variant. While humanitarian, medevac, or repatriation flights from India to Tanzania are still permitted, any passengers arriving on these flights are required to quarantine for 14 days on arrival.
Complete a traveler’s surveillance form for Tanzania
All passengers arriving in Tanzania are required to complete an individual Public Health Surveillance Form and submit it online, including children. Parents and guardians are permitted to complete the form on their child’s behalf.
To meet this requirement, it is necessary to enter passport information and basic travel plans onto an electronic form and submit it for approval. Once the submission is approved, the traveler receives a confirmation notification sent by email.
The confirmation notification contains a Unique Health Code (UHC), which the traveler can then present to a health desk on arrival in the country. Immigration authorities will then approve the individual for entry to Tanzania.
You may need a visa to travel to Tanzania depending on your nationality
The majority of foreign nationals need a visa to travel to Tanzania unless they hold a passport of a visa-exempt nationality. Unlike many countries around the world, Tanzania has continued to allow visa-free entry to these travelers during the ongoing pandemic.
Citizens of the following countries, including a number of nations in Southern and East Africa, can visit Tanzania without a visa for up to 3 months:
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- Botswana
- Brunei
- Cyprus
- Dominica
- Eswatini
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Grenada
- Guyana
- Hong Kong
- Jamaica
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Lesotho
- Macau
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Mauritius
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- Papua New Guinea
- Romania
- Rwanda
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Samoa
- Seychelles
- Singapore
- Solomon Islands
- South Africa
- South Sudan
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Vanuatu
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
- British Overseas Territories citizens
Additionally, passport holders from the UK Channel Islands are also granted visa exemption for Tanzania. Holders of a diplomatic, service, official or special passport issued by either Brazil, China, India, or Turkey are also permitted visa-free entry.
All other foreign travelers require a visa to visit Tanzania regardless of the amount of time they wish to spend in the country. This may be either a visa on arrival, a visa obtained from an embassy, or an electronic visa. This latter option is often considered the most efficient application method as it removes the long waits associated with applying for a visa on arrival or embassy document.
Yellow fever vaccination requirements
If you are arriving in Tanzania from any of the following countries, you will be required to show proof of yellow fever vaccination at the border to gain entry to the country:
- Angola
- Argentina
- Benin
- Bolivia
- Brazil
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cameroon
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Colombia
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Côte d'Ivoire
- Ecuador
- Equatorial Guinea
- Ethiopia
- French Guiana
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Guyana
- Kenya
- Liberia
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Republic of the Congo
- Rwanda
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- South Sudan
- Sudan
- Suriname
- Togo
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Uganda
- Venezuela
- Zambia
Yellow Fever Certificates are also necessary for any passenger who has transited for more than 12 hours through any of these countries on their way to Tanzania. Transit passengers who disembark from the immediate airport area in these territories must also show proof of yellow fever vaccination.
Customs restrictions for Tanzania
Travelers planning to visit Tanzania should also be aware that there are certain restrictions on currency and goods that an individual can bring into the country. Each passenger over the age of 16 is permitted to carry up to:
- 200 cigarettes
- 50 cigars
- 250g of tobacco
- 1 Imperial pint of spirits
Additionally, any amount of foreign currency over the equivalent of US $10,000 must be declared on arrival and upon departure. It is completely prohibited for any non-resident of Tanzania to import or export any local currency, the Tanzanian Shilling, with the exception of citizens of Kenya or Uganda.
