Tanzania has updated its visa arrangements, placing travellers from different countries under separate entry categories ranging from visa-free access to ordinary visas and referral visas.
- Tanzania updated its visa policy, categorizing countries into visa-free, ordinary visa, and referral visa requirements.
- As of September 25, 2026, Nigeria was removed from the referral visa category and now follows the standard visa process for entry to Tanzania.
- Nigerian citizens still need a visa but no longer require special referral clearance before traveling to Tanzania.
- Countries like the US, UK, Russia, China, and several others also use the ordinary visa process, with specific rules for types of visas and fees.
The latest change affects Nigeria, which Tanzania’s Immigration Services Department removed from the referral visa category in a public notice issued on September 25, 2026, under Government Gazette No. 246 of 2026.
The decision took effect immediately, allowing Nigerian passport holders to use the ordinary visa process without first seeking the additional immigration clearance required under the referral system, although they still need a visa to enter Tanzania.
Nigeria now sits alongside several other countries that fall outside the referral category, including Russia, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom, whose travellers can use Tanzania’s standard visa procedures.
The United States is also outside the referral category, although US passport holders travelling for tourism are required to obtain a multiple-entry visa.
From October 1, Tanzania will also require foreign visitors to purchase mandatory travel insurance, costing $44 per person.
Referral requirements remain for some countries
At the same time, Tanzania continues to apply referral visa requirements to travellers from Mali, Niger and Iran, whose nationals cannot obtain visas on arrival without prior approval from the Commissioner General of Immigration.
The same requirement applies to travellers from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Chad, Eritrea, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Pakistan, Palestine, Somalia, Syria, Sierra Leone, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Yemen.
Applicants in the referral category must submit their applications online and wait for approval before travelling, with Tanzania advising them to apply at least two months before their intended travel date.
Other countries fall under a different arrangement, with citizens of Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Ghana, Botswana, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe allowed to enter Tanzania without a visa.
Taken together, the rules place travellers into three broad groups: those who can enter visa-free, those who can use the standard visa process, and those who must first obtain referral approval.
For Nigerian travellers, the September 25 change removes that extra approval stage and places them under Tanzania’s standard visa process, while the country continues to maintain tighter entry requirements for several others.
