Burkina Faso eVisa and short-stay visa

A short-stay visa is valid for no more than 90 days and is granted for tourism, business or family visits, for one or several entries; the length of stay is fixed from the information in the application. The French-language fee table lists: tourist visa XOF 66,000 (single or multiple entry) for tourism or a festival, requiring proof of at least three nights in a Burkinabè hotel or a festival invitation; family visit visa XOF 66,000; cooperation visa XOF 71,500 single or XOF 77,000 multiple, for people coming under a cooperation agreement with the government or a town twinning, with the headquarters agreement or twinning deed. Conference, study and business trips have their own categories.

Every applicant provides a valid passport, the application form supplied by the administration completed, dated and signed, one recent colour photo of 3.5 x 4.5 cm on a white background, proof of the purpose of the stay, a medical certificate showing no contagious disease, a health insurance certificate covering the stay and the receipt for the stamp duty. Tourists add the hotel booking of at least three nights or the festival invitation.

Fill in the online form, pay and receive the answer. At an embassy, bring original documents; an official registers the application and you pay in cash to the treasurer against a receipt, whose scan is attached to the file, or by card or e-wallet with an extra transaction fee. The migration service may ask for more information through the embassy. About 72 hours later you are told the outcome; if positive you receive a PDF or printed pre-visa authorising travel.

Applicants who need their file handled urgently can choose the express visa at XOF 247,500. The fee table describes it as diligent processing of the visa application in less than 48 hours, while the column heading refers to a reply within 72 hours.

Take the pre-visa with you, printed or on a phone. At the land border or airport the migration officer verifies it and stamps your passport; you also fill in, date and sign an information card. Entry requires a health booklet under the International Health Regulations and a return ticket, a repatriation deposit or a waiver. Keep the pre-visa until you leave; on exit you show a valid travel document, the health booklet and a valid ticket.

A foreigner staying in Burkina Faso must renew the visa within the seven clear days before it expires, in person at the migration service, with original documents. A foreigner who moves to a new address must declare it to the police migration service at least 72 hours beforehand and receives a receipt.