So, you finally decided to visit Africa, more specifically the Pearl of Africa Uganda! Going to be your best trip yet, with lots to discover, lots of first moments, and better weather (smiley face). Tourist visas in Uganda are a requirement before you get into the country, so allow me to take you through what to expect from this process. 

The Republic of Uganda in 2016 launched e-Visa. A system that allows you to apply for a Visa online before entering the country. Hey, world! We are up to date now. You are required to pay a fee online and the visa is forwarded through email after filling out the application forms and the electronic payment is approved, or confirmation of approval is displayed on the website after the process is done. 

Here are a few need-to-know tips before you get started;

• The tourist visa is only valid for one Single entry and you can stay for as long as 45 days. I mean if you are only touring, 45 days sounds about enough to have quenched your thirst for the wild and beautiful outdoors. 
• Your passport should be valid for 6 months after entry into the country. 
• You should not have any other running Ugandan visa. You cannot be on a tourist visa concurrently with a work visa or student visa. 
• You cannot change this Visa into a work Visa once you are inside the country. Application for the work visa will be an entirely different process with different extra requirements. 
• Please remember to pack the passport that you used to register for an e-visa for uniformity. 
• The Visa is Valid for 90 days after arrival, this must be well within the time frame you intend to tour the country. 
• You must be out of Uganda to apply for this specific Visa.
• It is a requirement to print the e-visa and present it before being given the authority to enter. 

Requirements for the e-Visa

1. Visa payment fee. A tourist visa fee is a non-refundable fee. Single-entry $50 per person.  
2. Yellow fever vaccine certification and if not, you can get the fever shot once you arrive. 
3. 6 months valid passport with enough blank pages and copies of the bio-data printout
4. Two most recent passport photos

Steps to Obtaining Ugandan e-Visa

There are a few endorsed sites you can apply for the visa, please visit here to follow the easy steps to acquiring your visa. The steps are summarized here under; 

1. Choosing application type: You are already aware of the reason you travelling to the Pearl. But we are mostly interested in the tourist visa. It is as easy as clicking a button. 

2. Filling application forms: The form pretty much covers the usual checklists. (a) General information covering the type of visa you want, Validity of Visa (Single entry, Multiple entry and EAC entry), how long you plan to stay in the country and the specific dates of this time frame. (b) Personal information covering all your names, age, date of birth, marital status, Country and city of birth, occupation among others. (c) Your residential address, contact information, contacts of the focal person you’ll be within Uganda (d) Passport information detailing the passport number, type of passport, date of issue and expiry date and of course a declaration that all the information you have provided is true. Quite simple right?  

3. Attaching relevant questions for example a current and not soon-to-expire passport and for persons under 18 years a written letter from their biological or legal parents giving them authority to travel on their own.  

4. Submitting: The response is usually within 72 hours. Using the East African Community Visa can get you a response in only a day. Alternatively, check the website to confirm that your application has been approved. 

There are three subcategories of visas in Uganda available for you to choose from i.e. Single-entry for 3 months and mostly for first-time and one-time visitors (this will probably be more favourable), Multiple-entry which is given for six months at $100 and 12 months at $150, and East African Community (EAC) Visas which allows you to visit Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda at $100. You can pick any of the subcategories that are favourable for your trip. 

The requirements are easy and the process is a walk through a park. You can also get the fever shot and visa once you arrive by paying the pre-described fee and submitting the requirements at the immigration office. Do not be under pressure if you can’t squeeze a visa application into your busy schedule. You can do all that the moment you land. But it is always better to prepare in advance. 

(Not sure I should have put the last one- it kind of disregards all the others above)