Mauritania entry requirements, by passport
Mauritania visa requirements at a glance: 9 of the 198 passports VisaRadar tracks can enter Mauritania without arranging a visa beforehand: visa-free, with a visa on arrival, or with an electronic travel authorisation. The other 189 must obtain a visa before they travel.
Which passport do you hold?
We'll take you straight to the entry requirements for Mauritania for your nationality.
What we've verified for Mauritania
Beyond the yes/no matrix, we've checked these against an official primary source (last checked 23 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 (3)
- 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, European Union and Cooperation for Mauritania, updated 19 November 2025: passport validity, e-visa compulsory since 5 January 2025, renewal of an expired visa at the border, vaccinations, currency declaration above USD 3,000, alcohol and pork ban, PK55 border crossing); diplomatie.gov.mr (Mauritanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "Visa" page: rates by geographical zone and length of stay); anrpts.gov.mr (official e-visa application portal); gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/mauritania (UK Government: exact cash payment on arrival); who.int (WHO) and sanidad.gob.es (Spain's Ministry of Health, "Listado de países"): yellow fever; data.unesco.org (World Heritage List). All checked on 23 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: 24 September 2026.
| Passport | Requirement | Max. stay |
|---|---|---|
| Visa-free | ||
| Algeria | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Chad | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Gambia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Ivory Coast | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Libya | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Mali | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Niger | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Senegal | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Tunisia | Visa-free | 90 days |
| Visa required | ||
| Afghanistan | e-Visa | — |
| Albania | e-Visa | — |
| Andorra | e-Visa | — |
| Angola | e-Visa | — |
| Antigua and Barbuda | e-Visa | — |
| Argentina | e-Visa | — |
| Armenia | e-Visa | — |
| Australia | e-Visa | — |
| Austria | e-Visa | — |
| Azerbaijan | e-Visa | — |
| Bahamas | e-Visa | — |
| Bahrain | e-Visa | — |
| Bangladesh | e-Visa | — |
| Barbados | e-Visa | — |
| Belarus | e-Visa | — |
| Belgium | e-Visa | — |
| Belize | e-Visa | — |
| Benin | e-Visa | — |
| Bhutan | e-Visa | — |
| Bolivia | e-Visa | — |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | e-Visa | — |
| Botswana | e-Visa | — |
| Brazil | e-Visa | — |
| Brunei | e-Visa | — |
| Bulgaria | e-Visa | — |
| Burkina Faso | e-Visa | — |
| Burundi | e-Visa | — |
| Cambodia | e-Visa | — |
| Cameroon | e-Visa | — |
| Canada | e-Visa | — |
| Cape Verde | e-Visa | — |
| Central African Republic | e-Visa | — |
| Chile | e-Visa | — |
| China | e-Visa | — |
| Colombia | e-Visa | — |
| Comoros | e-Visa | — |
| Costa Rica | e-Visa | — |
| Croatia | e-Visa | — |
| Cuba | e-Visa | — |
| Cyprus | e-Visa | — |
| Czech Republic | e-Visa | — |
| Denmark | e-Visa | — |
| Djibouti | e-Visa | — |
| Dominica | e-Visa | — |
| Dominican Republic | e-Visa | — |
| DR Congo | e-Visa | — |
| Ecuador | e-Visa | — |
| Egypt | e-Visa | — |
| El Salvador | e-Visa | — |
| Equatorial Guinea | e-Visa | — |
| Eritrea | e-Visa | — |
| Estonia | e-Visa | — |
| Eswatini | e-Visa | — |
| Ethiopia | e-Visa | — |
| Fiji | e-Visa | — |
| Finland | e-Visa | — |
| France | e-Visa | — |
| Gabon | e-Visa | — |
| Georgia | e-Visa | — |
| Germany | e-Visa | — |
| Ghana | e-Visa | — |
| Greece | e-Visa | — |
| Grenada | e-Visa | — |
| Guatemala | e-Visa | — |
| Guinea | e-Visa | — |
| Guinea-Bissau | e-Visa | — |
| Guyana | e-Visa | — |
| Haiti | e-Visa | — |
| Honduras | e-Visa | — |
| Hong Kong | e-Visa | — |
| Hungary | e-Visa | — |
| Iceland | e-Visa | — |
| India | e-Visa | — |
| Indonesia | e-Visa | — |
| Iran | e-Visa | — |
| Iraq | e-Visa | — |
| Ireland | e-Visa | — |
| Israel | e-Visa | — |
| Italy | e-Visa | — |
| Jamaica | e-Visa | — |
| Japan | e-Visa | — |
| Jordan | e-Visa | — |
| Kazakhstan | e-Visa | — |
| Kenya | e-Visa | — |
| Kiribati | e-Visa | — |
| Kosovo | e-Visa | — |
| Kuwait | e-Visa | — |
| Kyrgyzstan | e-Visa | — |
| Laos | e-Visa | — |
| Latvia | e-Visa | — |
| Lebanon | e-Visa | — |
| Lesotho | e-Visa | — |
| Liberia | e-Visa | — |
| Liechtenstein | e-Visa | — |
| Lithuania | e-Visa | — |
| Luxembourg | e-Visa | — |
| Macao | e-Visa | — |
| Madagascar | e-Visa | — |
| Malawi | e-Visa | — |
| Malaysia | e-Visa | — |
| Maldives | e-Visa | — |
| Malta | e-Visa | — |
| Marshall Islands | e-Visa | — |
| Mauritius | e-Visa | — |
| Mexico | e-Visa | — |
| Micronesia | e-Visa | — |
| Moldova | e-Visa | — |
| Monaco | e-Visa | — |
| Mongolia | e-Visa | — |
| Montenegro | e-Visa | — |
| Morocco | e-Visa | — |
| Mozambique | e-Visa | — |
| Myanmar | e-Visa | — |
| Namibia | e-Visa | — |
| Nauru | e-Visa | — |
| Nepal | e-Visa | — |
| Netherlands | e-Visa | — |
| New Zealand | e-Visa | — |
| Nicaragua | e-Visa | — |
| Nigeria | e-Visa | — |
| North Korea | e-Visa | — |
| North Macedonia | e-Visa | — |
| Norway | e-Visa | — |
| Oman | e-Visa | — |
| Pakistan | e-Visa | — |
| Palau | e-Visa | — |
| Palestine | e-Visa | — |
| Panama | e-Visa | — |
| Papua New Guinea | e-Visa | — |
| Paraguay | e-Visa | — |
| Peru | e-Visa | — |
| Philippines | e-Visa | — |
| Poland | e-Visa | — |
| Portugal | e-Visa | — |
| Qatar | e-Visa | — |
| Republic of the Congo | e-Visa | — |
| Romania | e-Visa | — |
| Russia | e-Visa | — |
| Rwanda | e-Visa | — |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | e-Visa | — |
| Saint Lucia | e-Visa | — |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | e-Visa | — |
| Samoa | e-Visa | — |
| San Marino | e-Visa | — |
| Sao Tome and Principe | e-Visa | — |
| Saudi Arabia | e-Visa | — |
| Serbia | e-Visa | — |
| Seychelles | e-Visa | — |
| Sierra Leone | e-Visa | — |
| Singapore | e-Visa | — |
| Slovakia | e-Visa | — |
| Slovenia | e-Visa | — |
| Solomon Islands | e-Visa | — |
| Somalia | e-Visa | — |
| South Africa | e-Visa | — |
| South Korea | e-Visa | — |
| South Sudan | e-Visa | — |
| Spain | e-Visa | — |
| Sri Lanka | e-Visa | — |
| Sudan | e-Visa | — |
| Suriname | e-Visa | — |
| Sweden | e-Visa | — |
| Switzerland | e-Visa | — |
| Syria | Visa required | — |
| Taiwan | e-Visa | — |
| Tajikistan | e-Visa | — |
| Tanzania | e-Visa | — |
| Thailand | e-Visa | — |
| Timor-Leste | e-Visa | — |
| Togo | e-Visa | — |
| Tonga | e-Visa | — |
| Trinidad and Tobago | e-Visa | — |
| Turkey | e-Visa | — |
| Turkmenistan | e-Visa | — |
| Tuvalu | e-Visa | — |
| Uganda | e-Visa | — |
| Ukraine | e-Visa | — |
| United Arab Emirates | e-Visa | — |
| United Kingdom | e-Visa | — |
| United States | e-Visa | — |
| Uruguay | e-Visa | — |
| Uzbekistan | e-Visa | — |
| Vanuatu | e-Visa | — |
| Vatican | e-Visa | — |
| Venezuela | e-Visa | — |
| Vietnam | e-Visa | — |
| Yemen | e-Visa | — |
| Zambia | e-Visa | — |
| Zimbabwe | e-Visa | — |
Mauritania rules for every passport
Vaccinations, customs limits and penalties are the same for every traveller. Grounds for refusal depend on how you enter.
Vaccinations
- Yellow fever: an international vaccination certificate is required from travellers over one year of age arriving from a country with risk of transmission.
- Spain's Ministry of Health recommends yellow fever vaccination from nine months of age for travel to areas south of the Sahara desert, and not for itineraries limited to the desert. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses it for the area along the Senegal River.
Customs limits
- Cash
- Foreign currency above 3,000 US dollars must be declared on arrival, and exchange receipts kept to show on departure. Failing to declare can lead to confiscation and a fine of up to four times the undeclared amount. Taking ouguiyas out of the country is prohibited.
- Alcohol
- Importing alcohol is prohibited, as are pork products. The fine is usually twice the value of the goods seized, and in some cases the passport is withheld.
Overstay penalties
If you leave after your visa has expired, the authorities usually ask you to renew it at the border post, paying the corresponding fee. No fixed daily fine for overstaying was found in an official source.
Grounds for refusal
Apply to: Visa-free, Visa required
- A passport valid for six months or less.
- A passport reported lost or stolen.
Apply to: e-Visa
- A passport valid for six months or less.
- Arriving without an approved electronic visa: since January 2025 it is no longer issued on arrival.
- Not carrying the exact fee in cash.
- A passport reported lost or stolen.
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.
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Do you need a different visa for Nouakchott, Nouadhibou, or Atar?
No. Mauritania sets the requirements, so entering through Nouakchott asks for the same as entering through Nouadhibou or Atar. 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 Mauritania
Mauritania is travelled through its desert and its coast. Inland, the old caravan towns of Chinguetti, Ouadane, Tichitt and Oualata, founded in the 11th and 12th centuries to serve the caravans crossing the Sahara, were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1996 for their layout of courtyard houses and narrow lanes around a mosque with a square minaret. On the Atlantic coast, Banc d'Arguin National Park (1989) combines dunes, marshes, islets and shallow waters where many bird species spend the winter and sea turtles and dolphins live. Logistics come first: Spain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs divides the country into risk zones, regards the Nouadhibou-Nouakchott-Rosso axis as normal, allows visits to Chinguetti and Ouadane with caution and experienced local guides, and advises against travel east of the 12th meridian west, to the border with Mali and to old Oualata. It also advises against driving at night and recommends travelling by four-wheel drive in convoys of at least two vehicles.
Sources for this section: data.unesco.org (World Heritage List: Banc d'Arguin National Park, 1989; Ancient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata, 1996); Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs travel advice for Mauritania (risk zones, Chinguetti and Ouadane, Oualata, night driving). Accessed 23 September 2026.
Things to see and do in Mauritania
Tours, skip-the-line tickets and day trips, most with free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
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Where can Mauritania passport holders travel visa-free? →
Informational only. Always verify requirements with the official embassy or consulate before you travel.