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Last checked: October 2026.
Tanzania's visa costs little and is easy to get wrong. The mistakes are predictable: paying a lookalike website, applying too late, choosing the wrong visa type for your passport, or arriving from Kenya without a yellow fever certificate. The mainland and Zanzibar share one visa, but they do not share every other rule.
This page covers the mainland: the Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire, Manyara, Nyerere and the cities. For island-only questions, see our Zanzibar visa guide.
The detail
Apply on the official portal only. The e-visa portal is visa.immigration.go.tz, run by Tanzania Immigration Services, and its own guidelines say to apply through the official immigration website only. The fee is paid online by Visa or Mastercard. Every traveller, children included, needs a separate application. After approval you receive a Visa Grant Notice by email; the portal lets you track and download it. Print it. The notice is not a final authority to enter, and the immigration officer can still refuse entry.
Which visa, which fee. The portal's fee table sets these rates:
| Visa | Fee | Valid for | Who |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary (single entry) | US$50 | Up to 90 days | Tourists, including UK passport holders |
| Multiple entry | US$100 | One year | US citizens must take this for tourism |
| Transit | US$30 | Short stop | Passing through |
All sources agree on US$100 multiple-entry for US citizens, each stay up to 90 days. The Irish fee is disputed: the Tanzanian embassy's fee table lists Ireland at US$100, while the portal reading and other sources point to the US$50 single-entry visa. Pay what the portal charges at checkout, and allow for US$100 until it confirms otherwise.
Online or on arrival. You can also buy a single-entry visa on arrival at the main ports of entry, for the nationalities on the portal's list, which includes the UK, Ireland and most of Europe. The portal itself recommends applying online. GOV.UK states you cannot get a multiple-entry visa on arrival, so US travellers should apply online ahead of time. The portal does not state the on-arrival fee. We favour the online route because it moves the paperwork off a queue after a long flight, particularly when a safari driver or a connecting flight is waiting. If you hold a UK or European passport, land at Kilimanjaro or Dar es Salaam and have no tight onward connection, buying on arrival is a reasonable fallback.
Timing. The portal says applications are processed within ten days, with no minimum stated. Apply at least three weeks before you fly. That leaves room to fix a typo, which is the most common cause of delay.
Passport and arrival. The passport needs at least six months' validity and at least one unused visa page. Border control may ask to see a return or onward ticket, so keep it to hand.
Insurance (new for the mainland). According to the UK government's travel advice (GOV.UK), non-resident visitors must buy Tanzanian Government-provided inbound travel insurance, even if they hold their own policy. It lasts up to 92 days and you need it only for your first port of entry. If you land on the mainland first, buy from the National Insurance Corporation. If you land in Zanzibar first, buy from the Zanzibar Insurance Corporation. A Zanzibar policy bought before 1 October 2026 can still be used if your first stop is the mainland; for a mainland-first trip, cover bought since then must come from the National Insurance Corporation, either on arrival or online beforehand. You can be refused entry without it. The UK government page gives no price; our Zanzibar mandatory insurance guide covers how it works on the island.
Coming from Kenya: the yellow fever rule. Tanzania requires a yellow fever certificate from travellers arriving from a country on the WHO list, or who have spent 12 hours or more in transit in one. On the Ministry of Health's list (July 2023), Kenya and Uganda are included and Rwanda is not. Without a valid certificate, entry can be refused, or you can be vaccinated on arrival and kept under health observation for up to ten days. The vaccine is given at least ten days before entry and the certificate is valid for life. The Kenya side of the same crossing is on our Kenya eTA guide. Separately, Tanzania carries a high risk of malaria below 1,800 m. Speak to a doctor or travel clinic at least eight weeks before you go. This is general information, not medical advice.
One visa, mainland and Zanzibar. If you are visiting both, the form asks for your first destination, and you can visit both without a new visa. If you leave Tanzania for Kenya, Uganda or another East African country and come back while your Ordinary visa is still valid, the portal says you can use the same visa. A Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar trip therefore needs one Tanzanian visa, one insurance purchase at the first port of entry, and, if you pass through Kenya first, Kenya's eTA.
Key facts
Official portal: visa.immigration.go.tz. Tourist visa, UK passport: US$50, single entry, up to 90 days. US citizens: US$100 multiple entry, valid one year. Irish passports: fee disputed, confirm on the portal. Processing: within ten days. On arrival: single entry only, at main ports. Passport: six months' validity, one blank page. Insurance: government cover, first port of entry only, up to 92 days. Yellow fever certificate: required from Kenya and Uganda, not Rwanda (Ministry of Health list, July 2023). Last checked: October 2026.
Planning it with Nobu
A Tanzania trip is easier when the order of the stops fits the paperwork. We tell you whether to apply online, when to buy the insurance, and which end of a Kenya and Tanzania route should come first. We re-check entry rules and UK and US travel advice for every quote, and tell you and adjust if advice changes before you travel. and the application stays yours, in your name, on the official portal.
Is it right for you?
This page is right for you if you are planning a mainland safari and hold a passport from the UK, US or Europe. It will not settle the Irish fee or the on-arrival price. Choose another page if your trip is island only (Zanzibar visa), or if the question is cost (Tanzania safari cost) or timing (best time to visit Kenya and Tanzania).
Journeys to consider
- Tanzania, one chapter at a time — Eight days in northern Tanzania, with entry steps planned in. Tanzania, one chapter at a time
- Zanzibar, with nothing to rush — Seven days on the island, with a safari option. Zanzibar, with nothing to rush
- A little wild. A little barefoot — Mara to the coast, for a Kenyan route that links to Tanzania. A little wild. A little barefoot
