On 2 July 2015, The Department of Immigration introduced an electronic visa application system for everyone wishing to enter Kenya. The manual application system, where you are able to obtain a Kenya visa at the port of entry, e.g. at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, will be phased out from 1 September 2015. During July and August, you are able to obtain your Kenya visa on arrival or if you are a trendsetter, apply for your e-Visa in advance.

Before getting all excited, I would like to urge you to keep the following advice in mind when applying for a Kenya visa:

• As the approval process, takes up to 7 days, I recommend to apply well in advance so that your visa is secure at the time of travel! If you arrive in Kenya after 30 August 2015 without an e-Visa, your entry to Kenya will be denied.
• Only submit complete application forms – any incomplete application will be rejected, i.e. you have to start all over and pay again for the new application!
• You must be in possession of a passport, which is valid for at least six months and present the following documents on arrival: return ticket, travel itinerary and hotel bookings/places you are going to visit.

Now, how does this all work? Simply follow those 7 easy steps:

1. Visit the electronic visa page at https://www.ecitizen.go.ke/ and click on the top right corner button “Create an account”.
2. Click on “Create an Account for visitors” and complete the form with the requested details. After you have registered, you will receive an email that you need to click on to verify and confirm your registration.
3. You are then prompted to upload a digital passport photo (maximum size of 500px by 500px) and voila, you are in the eCitizen system.
4. Click on Department of Immigration Services “Get service Now”, select “Submit application”, select “Kenyan visa”, select the “Type of Visa” you require.
5. Upload the scanned bio-data page of your passport (the page with your photo, name and biographical data).
6. Go to “Payment” and pay for your visa using your VISA, MasterCARD or debit card. The fee for a single entry visa is US$50 per person plus US$1 service charge.
7. You will receive a confirmation via email – log into your ecitizen account and download your visa, print a copy and present it to the immigration officer at your point of entry into Kenya.

What do you think of this new development…