The Beninese Tourist Visa for your Holiday or Visiting a Family
If you are thinking of going to Benin as a tourist or to see a relative or friend, then applying for a Beninese tourist visa can become a necessary task.
Generally, you should be able to apply for the required Beninese tourist visa online/ at the nearest Beninese embassy in the country where you live, for a stay in Benin of up to 3 months.
General Visa Requirements and Validity Period of Beninese Tourist Visa
It is advisable to check the Beninese tourist visa requirements, before applying for your tourist visa to Benin.
A brief list of the most important requirements and conditions when getting the tourist visa for Benin:
- You do not intend to undertake volunteer job that would otherwise be done by a paid staff in Benin.
- You do not intend to join an employment relationship in Benin.
- You do not plan to give services to Beninese organisations (this is allowed with a Beninese work visa or business visa).
- You do not plan to offer or sell services or products to consumers in Benin.
- You and your family members are not in debt to the Benin Government.
- You do not pose a danger to the health or safety of residents of Benin.
- You are able to demonstrate that you have enough funds to pay for your visit and return from Benin.
Do you need a Beninese tourist visa?
It depends upon your citizenship and also the type of travel document you are using to take a trip to Benin.Please go here to check if you need a Beninese visa.
Exactly who can request a Beninese tourist visa?
Anyone wishing to go on holiday to Benin can make an application for a Beninese tourist visa.
There are several types of visa for Benin which you can use as a traveller to Benin. If you are unsure which type of Beninese tourist visa you require to apply, please speak to the closest Beninese visa office to obtain additional information as objective of this page is to give you basic overview when making an application for Beninese tourist visa.
What type of Beninese visa do I need?
This depends upon 3 factors:
- The citizenship according to your passport – If the citizenship according to the passport is from a country that is on visa free travel to Benin or eligible to obtain a visa on arrival in Benin, then you may not require to apply for a Beninese tourist visa prior to leaving from your home country. Please click here to confirm if you require a Beninese visa.
- The duration of your stay in Benin – If you wish to stay in Benin for a much shorter duration no more than ninety days, then you can apply for the Beninese tourist visa. If you want to remain much longer, then get in touch with the closest Beninese visa office to secure the suitable visa for your travel.
- The activities you want to carry out in Benin – If your sole purpose of travelling is for holiday, then you can apply for all kinds of Beninese tourist visas talked about on this web page.
General Visa Application Requirements to Obtain Beninese Tourist Visa
- Visitor visa application for Benin – Completed Beninese visa Form.
- Original and signed passport – The passport must be valid for at least six months prior to entering Benin and 3 months after departing Benin. It must have at least two spare visa pages and can not be older than 10 years.
- Passport type photo – Photo has to be no older than 6 months and must be 35 x 40mm in width.
- Previous passport – Supply a previous passport if you had any.
- Previous visas – Copies of previous Beninese visas information if you had any.
- Flight tickets to Benin – Reservation of return or round trip flight tickets. In some scenarios the Beninese visa office may request for pre paid air travel tickets to Benin.
- Travel insurance policy – Evidence of travel insurance coverage with a minimum cover set by the Beninese consular office provided with the Certificate of Insurance and the table of benefits. The travel insurance coverage must cover the cost of repatriation for medical reasons and the Certificate of Currency should be issued by an insurer. If you are thinking about using your credit card travel insurance for your travel to Benin, please contact Beninese embassy to find out more and travel insurance policy requirements for the Beninese visa.
- Original financial institution declarations – Original bank statements for the last 3 months revealing enough funds to cover stay in Benin. If statements are printed online after that it has to be Confirmed (stamped) by the bank officials.
- Hotel Reservations in Benin – Copy of confirmed hotel bookings including name of the applicant, name and address of the hotel, length of stay. In most circumstances, only bookings which are partly or completely pre-paid can be accepted.
- Work letter – This letter must be: original and signed letter from employer written on company letter head paper, confirming your ongoing employment, the status of employment, regular monthly salary and annual leave. Likewise, please give your 3 most recent pay slips. If you are self-employed: provide certified copies of business registration, income tax return.
- For students. Please provide the following:
- Evidence of current student status: Certificate of Enrollment.
- Original and signed letter from university written on university letter head paper, confirming on-going enrolment, confirming the payment of tuition fees or any kind of scholarships, and confirming term break.
- Insurance coverage from Organisation/University – Provide a letter from the University specifying the purpose, period of travel and confirmation that you are going to be covered by the insurance coverage for the whole journey together with the Certificate of Currency and summary of benefits.
In general, visa applications for Beninese visa must be submitted for an optimum of 6 months, and no later than 15 days, prior to the journey.