Guinea Bissau is a small West African nation not to be confused with its neighbor Guinea. I am having a small population has allowed nature to flourish in the country. You will find pristine beaches and the Bijagos archipelago, a protected biosphere reserve a homeland for saltwater hippos.
Even though the country has a small population and beautiful nature, security in the country is in question. Guinea Bissau has been facing political insecurity since gaining its independence in 1974. The political instability has led to many of its citizens to live in poverty.
Even with all the countries' issues, those who love nature will fall in love with the country. With the Guinea Bissau tourism industry growing, the country's government is continuously making strides to ensure the safety of all visitors in the country.
If you plan to visit the country, make an application for a visa as only 14 Guinea Bissau visa free countries. All other foreign nationals will need to get a visa in order to gain entry into the country. Fortunately, there are several ways to make a Guinea Bissau visa application.
Guinea Bissau Visa Policy
The Guinea Bissau visa policy states that all foreign nationals planning to visit the country must obtain a visa. There only 14 Guinea Bissau visa free countries whose citizens will be allowed entry with no visa. You can check whether you are from one of the visa-free countries here.
Persons holding diplomatic and service passports given by one of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries can also get into the country without a visa.
How To Get Guinea Bissau Visa
There are a few ways you can make a Guinea Bissau visa application if you are planning to visit the country. You can use one of these visa application processes to get a visa for Guinea Bissau.
- Embassy application
- Guinea Bissau visa on arrival
- Visa Processing Agency
Guinea Bissau E -Visa
The e-visa is a platform that allows you to make an application quickly, conveniently, and at your own comfort. All you need to do is log in to the platform and fill in all the necessary information as requested. After this, you will choose the type of visa you want then pay the fee. Guinea Bissau visa fee will range from 50USD to 150USD depending on the type of visa.
When making your application, you will need to attach all supporting documents before submitting your application for approval. The application will take 72 hours, i.e., 3 working days, to complete the review and approval. Pay attention to the Guinea Bissau visa requirements to prevent issues with your application. If you fail to get approval for your application, you will get an email notification from the relevant authorities informing you of the same.
Once the Guinea Bissau visa application is approved, you will get a notification in your email. Tough your email, get an e-visa registration receipt that you will need to print and carry it with you to Guinea Bissau. Once you get to the port, an immigration officer will capture your details and receive an entry visa.
You should always be aware of the fact that the Immigration officer holds full discloser as to whether to grant you entry into the country.
You can also obtain Guinea Bissau visa on arrival, with an authorization letter from Guinea-Bissau Migration Office and a valid travel document. To get visa Guinea Bissau visa on arrival, you need to have all details of your visit.
Guinea Bissau Embassy Application
Another way to answer the question, "how to get Guinea Bissau visa "? Is to make your application through the embassy.
Although Guinea Bissau does not have many diplomatic embassies worldwide, you can make a visa application in your resident country if there is an embassy. You will need to present yourself physically to the embassy if you choose to apply this way.
As it is in all other embassies, you will be required to download the application form from the website and fill it. Make you get the correct form to prevent processing delays. The form will contain information on the supporting documents you will need to present at the embassy.
Book an appointment with the embassy before you go down there, as you will not be allowed in without an appointment. Once you get to the embassy at your appointed time, percent your application to an immigration office. They will review your application and make sure you meet all the requirements. After this, the officer will conduct an interview and decide on whether or not to grant a visa.
If you are successful, the officer will then direct you to pay the Guinea Bissau visa fee before your visa is processed. As always, you should be aware of the fact that the Immigration officer holds full discloser as to whether to grant you entry into the country.
Visa Processing Agency
There are a few agencies that can help you apply for a Guinea Bissau visa. The agencies will primarily assist in processing tourist visas. However, in some cases, a few of them will help you process a business visa and a transit visa.
This process is often stress-free as the agencies will help you fill the visa application form and even ensure that you meet all the Guinea Bissau visa requirements. In addition, they will inform you of the Guinea Bissau visa cost you will need to meet when making your application.
You should, however, make sure that you engage a professional and trustworthy agency. Since there is money involved (as the agencies will charge a small fee), a few people are taking advantage and corning people out of their hard-earned money. In addition, the Guinea Bissau visa cost will be higher as these agencies will add a service fee to your
application.
Guinea Bissau Visa Requirements
Following the Guinea Bissau visa policy, you will need to produce a few supporting documents when you apply for the visa. You should note that there are no precise requirements when applying for a visa. All those who want to travel to the country should contact the embassy before heading to the country.
Below are the general requirement you will need to meet;
- Passport – you will need to have a valid passport from your resident country. The passport must be valid for 6 more months from the entry date into Guinea Bissau.
- You will need to provide a copy of your passport's information page, scan the page, and attach it to your application.
- Recent Digital passport photo of yourself. The passport photo should have been taken in the last 3 months and have a white background. Along with this, make sure the photo meets all other 'passport photo' guidelines.
- Return flight ticket. The ticket will be show proof that you intend to leave the country before the expiry of your visa.
- Proof of accommodation. You must provide proof that you have a place to stay while in the country. This can be a letter from a family member or friend living in the country or a hotel reservation payment.
- Travel itinerary. Include a list of activities you plan to undertake and the cities you are planning to visit.
- Adequate funds. You will need to provide evidence that you have enough funds to support yourself during your stay in the country.
- Yellow fever certificate. All those who come from regions affected by yellow fever must get vaccinated and issued a certificate.
Below are the additional Guinea Bissau visa requirements.
Tourist Application Requirements For A Guinea Bissau Visa:
For the tourist visa, there are no further requirements when applying for the Guinea Bissau visa. The immigration office will request only the above documents on the application.
Guinea Bissau Business Visa
For all foreigners who apply for a business visa, get a letter of authorization from the Migration Office in Guinea-Bissau. To obtain this letter, you will need to follow the process below.
- The applicant will send a scanned copy of their passport to their employer Guinea-Bissau. They will need to include details about their trip, showing the reason for visiting Guinea Bissau and how long they plan to stay in the country.
- Once the employer receives these documents, they must bring them to the migration office in Guinea-Bissau. Here they will then submit a request for the letter of authorization attaching the documents to the application.
- The application will undergo a review by the Chief Officer of the Migration Office, who will then make a decision.
- Once the application is approved, the employer will then send the letter of authorization to the applicant.
- The applicant will have to print the letter of authorization and present it when they are applying for a visa.
With the lack of information on the Guinea Bissau visa application process, you should always check with the embassy before making travel arraignments. Doing so will ensure you do not run into any complications when you arrive in the country for your visit.
Remember also that the country has a history of political instability and a high rate of poverty. It would be best if you always made adequate security arrangements when it the country. If you plan your trip well, there are a lot of exciting adventures waiting for you in Guinea Bissau.
