Entry requirements for Botswana - All information at a glance

When you want to visit Botswana, you should inform yourself a few months in advance about the entry requirements for the African country.

Issuing visas, building an optimal vaccination protection, and organizing important documents take some time. For individuals from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, with a valid passport, no visa is required as long as the vacation period does not exceed 90 days. However, the passport must have four free pages and a validity of at least six months upon arrival in the country.

At the airport and border crossings, the entry permit is free with the document, and passports for children are recognized.

A temporary passport entitles entry to Botswana only if there is a valid visa, which can be easily ordered at buch-dein-visum.de. You cannot visit the country in southern Africa with an ID card.

For entry requirements related to the pandemic, fully vaccinated tourists with proof of vaccination are allowed to enter. An additional PCR test is not necessary before the flight in such a case.

If you lack proof of vaccination, entry is also possible with a negative PCR test. However, it must not be older than 72 hours. Without a test conducted at the departure location and with an expired test certificate, you must undergo a PCR test immediately upon arrival in Botswana.

If it is positive, you will need to quarantine at your own expense for five days. With a negative result, you can travel the country without restrictions.

Entry requirements in Europe do not include vaccination requirements. However, the country is located in the tropics, and dangerous pathogens can quickly turn your vacation into a disaster. Therefore, it is important to build good immunity against typical tropical diseases before your visit so that you can enjoy the beauty of Botswana without health issues.

Persons who want to travel to Botswana as tourists for a few days or weeks do not need a visa with a valid passport. The prerequisite is that they are citizens of certain countries.

In addition to Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Liechtenstein, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Norway, Great Britain, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Portugal, the Philippines, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy and the Vatican, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Norway, Palestine, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Czech Republic, Turkey, Uruguay and Venezuela are among the states that are exempt from visa requirements.

If you are not a national of these countries, a visa is necessary. If your stay in Botswana lasts longer than 90 days, you must also apply for such confirmation.

If the visit is for business purposes, a special authorization is also required upon entry into Botswana. For business e-visas, you must provide the contact information of the respective partner or company in Botswana. In the case of temporarily issued passports, you cannot avoid applying for a visa.

For students, there are special visas that require proof from the educational institution in the African country. If you want to use the national territory to continue your journey to another country, a transit visa with a validity of up to seven days is the right document.

Obtaining a visa from buch-dein-visum.de is very straightforward. The application process is easy to understand, and a helpful customer service is available to answer any questions.

Botswana is a country in tropical regions and thus a risk area for dangerous diseases. If you are traveling from countries where yellow fever is prevalent, you must have a vaccination against it. This usually includes states in East and Central Africa.

Although there is no mandatory vaccination against the pathogens of polio, pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, measles, and hepatitis A, it is better to travel to Africa with appropriate immunity. For longer visits and upcoming contact with animals, protection against rabies is also advisable.

In addition, vaccinations against typhoid and hepatitis B are recommended. The latter is particularly advisable for closer contact with the local population. There is still no vaccine against malaria, so prophylaxis is advisable for certain regions in Botswana.

In particular, the northern part of the country is a high-risk area that requires a certain level of protection. Taking malaria medication before the vacation is recommended here. Gaborone and the southern part of Botswana are largely considered low risk. Using effective mosquito protection in the form of sprays and mosquito nets above the bed helps minimize the risk.

If you want to bring a child with you on your trip to Botswana, there are special regulations to consider. For individuals under 18 years old, a birth certificate is mandatory for presentation. The document should be written in English to avoid communication issues. With a certified translation or an international birth certificate, you are on the safe side.

Proof is also required for very young children. An entry in the passport for the child has not been sufficient since 2012.

Children also need a passport valid for at least six months with a minimum of four blank pages. If only one parent or no parent is traveling, a notarized affidavit with the consent of the non-accompanying guardians back home must also be presented in English, not older than six months. The authorization must specifically state that it is for the current vacation. Additionally, certified copies of the passport and contact details of the absent parents are required.

You can also visit Botswana with your dog. All imports of live animals are regulated and approved at the headquarters in Gaborone. Submit the application for the import of the four-legged friend to the relevant Ministry of Agriculture.

The following information is necessary for a positive decision: Full name and address of the importer, the breed and gender of the dog, the country and municipality from which the animal originates, and the exact destination.

For more information, you can contact the relevant ministry at the phone number +2673950753. For email contact, please use the address kgalekhutle@gov.bw. The issuance of the permit takes some time, so early application is recommended.

Save yourself the trouble and let us handle the registration of your dog.

Regarding import regulations, there are no major restrictions in Botswana. You can bring as much foreign and local currency as you want. However, amounts exceeding 10,000 Pula must be declared upon entry.

When leaving, make sure not to have more than 50 Botswana Pula in your wallet. Other currencies should not exceed the declared amount upon arrival. Travelers can import 20 cigars, 200 cigarettes, and 250 grams of tobacco. In terms of alcoholic beverages, two liters of wine and one liter of spirits are allowed. Tobacco products and alcohol can only be carried by persons over 18 years of age. Perfume can be up to 50 milliliters and Eau de Toilette up to 250 milliliters in your luggage.

Carrying weapons is only allowed for hunting purposes, provided that an import permit is available. This permit is subject to a fee and is limited to four weeks.

Plastic bags, pornographic products, and drugs are not allowed to be brought in. In addition, the import of dairy and meat products is not permitted.

If you want to import goods exceeding the typical quantities, you need approval from the Botswana customs authority. Since 1969, the country has been part of the Southern African Common Customs Area, so importing goods from the associated states of South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, and Namibia is duty-free. If you are not entering from these countries, the items in your luggage must not exceed a total value of 10,000 South African Rand.

In Botswana, there are several airports scattered throughout the country. Sir Seretse Khama is the international airport of the capital Gaborone, located north of the metropolis. The four airlines Air Botswana, Ethiopian Airlines, South African Express, and Qatar Airways serve the airport, connecting it to destinations within the country as well as to Addis Ababa, Harare, Johannesburg, Windhoek, and Doha.

There are no direct flights from Germany. Usually, flights first go to Frankfurt am Main, Paris, Madrid, or Amsterdam, and then to Johannesburg or Windhoek before reaching Botswana. The Maun Airport in the city of the same name is the ideal starting point for trips to the Okavango Delta. Here, especially charter flights are offered, transporting tourists to the stunning inland delta of the Okavango.

Connections to Gaborone and Kasane are also available. South Africa and Windhoek are also served by the Maun Airport. Other important airports in Botswana are Kasane Airport in Kasane and Francistown Airport in Francistown.

If you are traveling to another country through Botswana, you do not need a transit visa if you depart on the same plane from the same airport where you arrived. If you plan to leave the airport for a maximum of seven days, a transit visa is required to legitimize your stay. The visa cannot be extended regardless of the reasons.

With a transit visa, you are not allowed to work, start training, or begin studying. To obtain such a visa, you need to provide flight details, accommodation bookings, or a residential address in Botswana, among other requirements.

Proof of your onward travel such as visas for other countries or a confirmed onward booking must be presented within three days. Freight forwarders and tour operators have up to 14 days to provide proof of a cross-border travel permit.

The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany can be found at Queens Road 1079-1084. Here you can get help with all consular matters. If you wish to contact by mail, write to Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, P.O. Box 315, Gaborone, Botswana. The head is Margit Hellwig-Bötte, whom you can contact directly.

You can reach the embassy by phone at +267 3953143. For urgent matters, there is an emergency phone available at +267 71300139. Visa issues are not handled through this phone.

If you wish to send a fax, use the number +267 3953038. The website of the embassy in Gaborone is http://www.gaborone.diplo.de. Through this website, you can also make contact with the foreign representation via an online form.

In Maun, Honorary Consul Dr. Michaela Kruck is active. Her area of jurisdiction includes the districts of Chobe, Ghanzi, and the Northwest District. You can find the foreign representation on Moeti Road Plot No. 448 at Okavango Air Rescue, an organization for emergency rescue in northern Botswana.

You can reach the consul by mail at Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany, Okavango Air Rescue, P. O. Box 1966, Maun, Botswana. The email address is maun@hk-diplo.de.

For phone contact, dial +267 6861616, or send a fax to +267 6861660. The official language in the foreign representations is English. If your language skills are not strong, you will of course also be assisted in German.