Botswana entry requirements, by passport
Botswana visa requirements at a glance: 103 of the 198 passports VisaRadar tracks can enter Botswana without arranging a visa beforehand: visa-free, with a visa on arrival, or with an electronic travel authorisation. The other 95 must obtain a visa before they travel.
Which passport do you hold?
We'll take you straight to the entry requirements for Botswana for your nationality.
What we've verified for Botswana
Beyond the yes/no matrix, we've checked these against an official primary source (last checked 25 September 2026). The specifics depend on your nationality: open your passport's row in the table for the detail that applies to you.
- Required documents (4)
- Required vaccinations
- Customs limits (cash, alcohol, tobacco)
- Overstay penalties
- Stay and transit rules
Sources: exteriores.gob.es (travel advice of Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Botswana, updated 26 May 2026: six-month passport, 90 days visa-free, High Commission in London, extension, penalties, minors, international permit, risk areas); gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/botswana (UK Government: three pages, entry stamp, 90 days, minors, yellow fever, Ebola, 10,000-pula declaration); gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/zambia (KAZA visa); sanidad.gob.es ("Listado de países") and who.int (WHO): yellow fever; data.unesco.org (World Heritage List). All checked on 25 September 2026. Also: burs.org.bw (Botswana Unified Revenue Service, "Duty Free Allowance": allowances and values of 3,000 and 500 rand, 25 September 2026).
This table summarises the exact entry mechanism for every passport we track. The difference between entering visa-free, with an electronic authorisation, with an e-Visa, or with a traditional visa is explained in visa, e-Visa, and electronic authorisation: what's the difference. How we verify every row before publishing it is on methodology.
Base entry rules refreshed 12 October 2026. Published: 25 September 2026.
| Passport | Requirement | Max. stay |
|---|---|---|
| Visa-free | ||
| Angola | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Argentina | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Australia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Austria | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Bahamas | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Bahrain | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Barbados | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Belgium | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Belize | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Brazil | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Brunei | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Bulgaria | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Canada | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Chile | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Costa Rica | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Croatia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Cuba | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Cyprus | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Czech Republic | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Denmark | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Dominica | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Dominican Republic | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Estonia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Eswatini | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Finland | Visa-free | 90 days |
| France | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Gambia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Germany | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Greece | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Grenada | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Guyana | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Hong Kong | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Hungary | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Iceland | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Ireland | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Israel | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Italy | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Jamaica | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Japan | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Kenya | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Kiribati | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Kuwait | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Latvia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Lesotho | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Liechtenstein | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Lithuania | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Luxembourg | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Malawi | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Malaysia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Maldives | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Malta | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Mauritius | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Mexico | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Monaco | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Mozambique | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Namibia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Nauru | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Netherlands | Visa-free | 90 days |
| New Zealand | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Norway | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Oman | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Papua New Guinea | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Paraguay | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Peru | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Poland | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Portugal | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Qatar | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Romania | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Russia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Saint Lucia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Samoa | Visa-free | 90 days |
| San Marino | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Saudi Arabia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Seychelles | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Sierra Leone | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Singapore | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Slovakia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Slovenia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Solomon Islands | Visa-free | 90 days |
| South Africa | Visa-free | 90 days |
| South Korea | Visa-free | 90 days |
| South Sudan | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Spain | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Sweden | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Switzerland | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Tanzania | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Tonga | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Trinidad and Tobago | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Turkey | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Tuvalu | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Uganda | Visa-free | 90 days |
| United Arab Emirates | Visa-free | 90 days |
| United Kingdom | Visa-free | 90 days |
| United States | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Uruguay | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Vanuatu | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Vatican | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Venezuela | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Zambia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Zimbabwe | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Visa required | ||
| Afghanistan | e-Visa | — |
| Albania | e-Visa | — |
| Algeria | e-Visa | — |
| Andorra | e-Visa | — |
| Armenia | e-Visa | — |
| Azerbaijan | e-Visa | — |
| Bangladesh | e-Visa | — |
| Belarus | e-Visa | — |
| Benin | e-Visa | — |
| Bhutan | e-Visa | — |
| Bolivia | e-Visa | — |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | e-Visa | — |
| Burkina Faso | e-Visa | — |
| Burundi | e-Visa | — |
| Cambodia | e-Visa | — |
| Cameroon | e-Visa | — |
| Cape Verde | e-Visa | — |
| Central African Republic | e-Visa | — |
| Chad | e-Visa | — |
| China | e-Visa | — |
| Colombia | e-Visa | — |
| Comoros | e-Visa | — |
| Djibouti | e-Visa | — |
| DR Congo | e-Visa | — |
| Ecuador | e-Visa | — |
| Egypt | e-Visa | — |
| El Salvador | e-Visa | — |
| Equatorial Guinea | e-Visa | — |
| Eritrea | e-Visa | — |
| Ethiopia | e-Visa | — |
| Fiji | e-Visa | — |
| Gabon | e-Visa | — |
| Georgia | e-Visa | — |
| Ghana | e-Visa | — |
| Guatemala | e-Visa | — |
| Guinea | e-Visa | — |
| Guinea-Bissau | e-Visa | — |
| Haiti | e-Visa | — |
| Honduras | e-Visa | — |
| India | e-Visa | — |
| Indonesia | e-Visa | — |
| Iran | e-Visa | — |
| Iraq | e-Visa | — |
| Ivory Coast | e-Visa | — |
| Jordan | e-Visa | — |
| Kazakhstan | e-Visa | — |
| Kosovo | Visa required | — |
| Kyrgyzstan | e-Visa | — |
| Laos | e-Visa | — |
| Lebanon | e-Visa | — |
| Liberia | e-Visa | — |
| Libya | e-Visa | — |
| Macao | e-Visa | — |
| Madagascar | e-Visa | — |
| Mali | e-Visa | — |
| Marshall Islands | e-Visa | — |
| Mauritania | e-Visa | — |
| Micronesia | e-Visa | — |
| Moldova | e-Visa | — |
| Mongolia | e-Visa | — |
| Montenegro | e-Visa | — |
| Morocco | e-Visa | — |
| Myanmar | e-Visa | — |
| Nepal | e-Visa | — |
| Nicaragua | e-Visa | — |
| Niger | e-Visa | — |
| Nigeria | e-Visa | — |
| North Korea | e-Visa | — |
| North Macedonia | e-Visa | — |
| Pakistan | e-Visa | — |
| Palau | e-Visa | — |
| Palestine | e-Visa | — |
| Panama | e-Visa | — |
| Philippines | e-Visa | — |
| Republic of the Congo | e-Visa | — |
| Rwanda | e-Visa | — |
| Sao Tome and Principe | e-Visa | — |
| Senegal | e-Visa | — |
| Serbia | e-Visa | — |
| Somalia | e-Visa | — |
| Sri Lanka | e-Visa | — |
| Sudan | e-Visa | — |
| Suriname | e-Visa | — |
| Syria | e-Visa | — |
| Taiwan | e-Visa | — |
| Tajikistan | e-Visa | — |
| Thailand | e-Visa | — |
| Timor-Leste | e-Visa | — |
| Togo | e-Visa | — |
| Tunisia | e-Visa | — |
| Turkmenistan | e-Visa | — |
| Ukraine | e-Visa | — |
| Uzbekistan | e-Visa | — |
| Vietnam | e-Visa | — |
| Yemen | e-Visa | — |
Botswana rules for every passport
Vaccinations, customs limits and penalties are the same for every traveller.
Vaccinations
- Yellow fever: since 15 July 2016 a certificate has been required from travellers over one year of age arriving from or having passed through a country with risk of transmission, and from those who have spent more than 12 hours in transit at an airport in one of them.
Customs limits
- Cash
- Cash in local or foreign currency worth 10,000 pula or more must be declared; failing to do so can lead to prosecution.
- Alcohol
- Free of duty and, where applicable, VAT, provided they are declared on entry: 2 litres of wine and 1 litre of spirits or other alcoholic drinks. Also other new or used goods worth up to 3,000 rand when arriving from outside SACU, or 500 rand from within.
- Tobacco
- 200 cigarettes, 20 cigars and 250 grams of cigarette or pipe tobacco, duty-free if declared. Every traveller must declare all goods they carry to customs.
Overstay penalties
Overstaying can delay your departure, and Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs warns that breaching visa rules can bring fines and even detention. The amount could not be confirmed against Botswana's immigration law.
Grounds for refusal
- A passport with less than six months' validity or without three blank pages.
- Minors without the full birth certificate or the absent parent's consent.
- Coming to work or volunteer without the relevant visa or permit.
- Arriving from a yellow fever risk country without the certificate.
Travel insurance
Each destination decides whether to require insurance, and some check it at the border. If yours does, make sure the policy covers the whole trip.
See IATI's international site →IATI sells its policies according to the country you live in. Where do you live?
If your country isn't listed, try IATI's international site.
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Do you need a different visa for Gaborone, Maun, or Kasane?
No. Botswana sets the requirements, so entering through Gaborone asks for the same as entering through Maun or Kasane. If you're arriving overland or through a small border post, check that separately: some countries apply their own rules to specific crossings.
What does change is where you file the application when a visa is needed, and that depends on the country you live in rather than the city you're travelling to.
What draws travellers to Botswana
Botswana has two properties on the World Heritage List. The Okavango Delta is an inland delta that never reaches the sea: the river fans out into the Kalahari desert and each year floods a vast plain that draws one of the largest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. Tsodilo, in the north-west, holds thousands of rock paintings in hills sacred to the San. Chobe National Park, near Kasane, is another much-visited safari park, and Maun is the gateway to the delta. Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs only asks for basic precautions in cities, especially Gaborone and Maun, and recommends malaria prophylaxis for trips to the north or the Okavango.
Sources for this section: data.unesco.org (World Heritage List: Tsodilo 2001, Okavango Delta 2014); Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs travel advice for Botswana. Accessed 25 September 2026.
Things to see and do in Botswana
Tours, skip-the-line tickets and day trips, most with free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
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Where can Botswana passport holders travel visa-free? →
Informational only. Always verify requirements with the official embassy or consulate before you travel.