Egypt visa for African travellers
Most Egypt travel advice is written for European and North American passports. This page is written for yours — what the official e-Visa list actually says, what OK-to-Board is, and how to find out which route applies to you before you book a ticket.
Which Egypt visa route may apply to your passport?
Egypt does not operate one rule for every visitor. There are several routes into the country, and which one is open to you depends on your nationality and your circumstances rather than on anything a travel article can decide for you.
The one thing that is published, officially and in full, is the list of nationalities that may apply for Egypt’s online e-Visa. That is the sensible place to start, because it is a fact you can check yourself in under a minute.
Egypt's official e-Visa eligibility
Published by the Egyptian government on its own e-Visa portal. This is the only part of this page that comes from an official source — everything else is either our own operating experience or something you must confirm for your own trip.
What the list says
Egypt publishes the nationalities that may apply for its online e-Visa. Of all the countries on that published list, South Africa is the only African country included.
If your nationality is not on the list, the online e-Visa application is simply not available to you. That is a statement about one route — not about whether you can travel to Egypt.
Official e-Visa fees
The portal publishes USD 30 for a single-entry tourism e-Visa and USD 65 for multiple entries.
These are the fees for the e-Visa route, for travellers eligible to use it. Fees are set by the Egyptian authorities and can change.
Check the official source yourself
We would rather you verified this than took our word for it. The eligible-nationality list, the fees and the document requirements are all published here:
visa2egypt.gov.eg/eVisa/FAQRequirements can change. Confirm with the relevant Egyptian authority and your airline before travel.
What happens when the e-Visa route is closed to you
This is the position most African passport holders are in, and it is the question the rest of the internet answers badly.
Not being on the e-Visa list does not mean Egypt is closed to you. It means one particular online route is not available, and that you need to establish which other route fits your situation before you commit money to a ticket.
We are not going to publish a table claiming to know the answer for every African nationality. We could not find a current official public visa-on-arrival nationality list from the Egyptian authorities, so we will not guess which passports qualify. Requirements move, and a confident-sounding page that turns out to be wrong is how travellers end up stranded at a departure gate. What we do instead is check your specific case.
What your route actually depends on
- Your nationality, and the passport you will actually travel on
- Your passport type — ordinary, official, diplomatic, refugee or travel document
- The airline you fly, and what that airline requires before it will board you
- The Egyptian requirements in force on the day you travel
- Your own circumstances — residence permits, previous visas, purpose of travel
What is OK-to-Board?
One of the most searched and most misunderstood terms in African travel to Egypt.
OK-to-Board is a clearance that some airlines require before they will carry a passenger on a particular route. It is issued by or on behalf of the airline, and it concerns one thing: whether you are allowed to board the aircraft.
It is not an Egyptian visa, it is not issued by the Egyptian government, and it does not decide whether you are admitted to Egypt. Entry is determined by the Egyptian authorities when you arrive.
Whether OK-to-Board applies to you depends on your airline, your route and your passport. We arrange it where it applies and where we can — and we tell you when we cannot. Read more about how we handle it on our OK-to-Board support page, or see what happens after you land in our Egypt visa on arrival guide.
Country guides for African travellers
We publish a country guide when we have enough verified, country-specific substance to make it genuinely useful. Where we do not have that yet, we would rather check your case directly than guess in public.
| Country | Guide |
|---|---|
| Nigeria | Country guide available |
| Ghana | Country guide coming next |
| Kenya | Country guide coming next |
| Ethiopia | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Sudan | Ask us to confirm your route |
| South Sudan | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Somalia | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Eritrea | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Chad | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Cameroon | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Senegal | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Côte d'Ivoire | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Tanzania | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Uganda | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Rwanda | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Sierra Leone | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Liberia | Ask us to confirm your route |
| Gambia | Ask us to confirm your route |
This table lists the markets we work with most often. It does not state an entry rule for any country, because entry requirements depend on the individual traveller and can change. Send us your passport details and we will confirm what applies to your trip.
What to prepare
Useful whichever route turns out to apply to you. Having these ready makes every later step faster.
- A passport valid for at least six months beyond your travel date
- Your confirmed flight booking, including the airline and flight numbers
- Where you will stay, and a rough itinerary
- Documents that support your purpose of travel — an invitation, hospital letter or university admission, for example
- A way to pay fees, and a note of which fees are paid where
Our how it works page sets out the order we do things in.
Common mistakes
Drawn from what actually goes wrong for the travellers who come to us after something has gone wrong.
Assuming the e-Visa applies to you
The official e-Visa list is published, and most African nationalities are not on it. Check the list before you start an online application you may not be able to complete.
Paying for a ticket before confirming your route
A non-refundable ticket is the most expensive mistake we see. Confirm what your passport and airline require first, then book.
Treating OK-to-Board as a visa
OK-to-Board is a clearance from your airline that relates to boarding. It is not an Egyptian visa and it does not decide whether you are admitted to Egypt.
Relying on advice written for a different passport
Most Egypt travel articles are written for European or North American travelers. What applies to them frequently does not apply to an African passport holder.
Leaving it to the last few days
Airline clearances and document checks take time. Starting early costs nothing and removes most of the risk.
What MISR VISA actually does
We are a private travel-assistance company in Cairo. We are not a government body or an embassy, and we cannot change what the rules are.
- Check your nationality, passport and planned route before you spend money
- Tell you plainly if your airline or route is one we cannot support
- Arrange airline OK-to-Board where it applies and where we are able to
- Explain what to expect on arrival at Cairo International Airport
- Help with flights, accommodation and airport pickup if you want them
- Give you a tracking number so you can follow your case yourself
What we cannot do is guarantee entry. Admission to Egypt is decided by the Egyptian authorities at the border, and no agent controls that. More in our frequently asked questions.
Egypt visa questions from African travellers
Can I apply for Egypt's e-Visa with an African passport?
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Only if your nationality appears on Egypt's published e-Visa list. On the official list at visa2egypt.gov.eg, South Africa is the only African country included. If your nationality is not listed, the online e-Visa route is not open to you and you will need to confirm which other route applies. Requirements can change — check the official portal before you rely on this.
If I am not on the e-Visa list, does that mean I cannot visit Egypt?
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No. The e-Visa is one route among several. Not appearing on that list means the online application is not available to you; it does not mean you cannot travel. What applies instead depends on your nationality, passport, airline and the requirements in force when you travel, which is what we help you establish before you book.
What is OK-to-Board, and is it a visa?
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It is not a visa. OK-to-Board is a clearance some airlines require before they will carry a passenger to a destination. It concerns boarding, and it is issued by or on behalf of the airline. Egyptian entry is decided separately by the Egyptian authorities when you arrive.
How much does the Egypt e-Visa cost?
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Egypt's official e-Visa portal publishes USD 30 for a single-entry tourism e-Visa and USD 65 for multiple entries. These are the official e-Visa fees for travelers eligible to use that route. Fees are set by the Egyptian authorities and can change, so confirm the current amount on the official portal.
Which airlines do you work with for travel to Egypt?
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We work most often with EgyptAir and Ethiopian Airlines for African routes to Cairo, and we will tell you plainly if your chosen airline is one we cannot support. Airline requirements differ and change, so we confirm against your specific booking rather than giving a blanket answer.
Can MISR VISA guarantee I will be allowed into Egypt?
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No, and you should be careful with anyone who says they can. Entry is decided by the Egyptian authorities at the border. What we can do is make sure your documents are in order, confirm what your airline requires, and tell you honestly if we think something about your trip is a problem before you spend money on it.
Find out which route applies to you — before you book.
Send us your nationality, passport and travel plans. We will tell you what applies to your trip, and tell you honestly if something about it is a problem.