IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? Zimbabwe has announced that it has eased visa requirements by extending visas-on-arrival to an additional 28 countries.

What does the change mean? The list of countries that have been moved from Category C (visa required prior to travel) to Category B (visa-on-arrival) include Bahrain, Ethiopia, India, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Romania, Senegal and others.

  • Implementation time frame: Immediate.
  • Visas/permits affected: Visas on arrival (Category B).
  • Who is affected: Nationals of the 28 countries listed below.
  • Impact on processing times: Designated nationals will not need to obtain a visa before traveling to Zimbabwe. 
  • Business impact: Business visitors are allowed to use the visa on arrival. The sole exception is Chinese nationals because they uniquely fall into both Category B (visas on arrival) if they are tourists traveling as a group cleared by tour operators and travel agencies in China) and Category C (visa-required) if traveling on business or not as a tourist traveling as a group cleared by tour operators and travel agencies in China.

Background: Zimbabwe Vice President Constantino Chiwenga said that the country “should take advantage of the international community’s confidence in the new administration to market the country as a preferred destination for tourists and investors.”

Countries Moved from Category C to Category B
Albania Ecuador Honduras Peru
Armenia El Salvador India Reunion
Bahrain Ethiopia Mexico Romania
Bhutan French Guiana Nicaragua San Marino
Bulgaria Guam Norfolk Islands Senegal
Chile Guatemala Panama Venezuela
Costa Rica Guyana Paraguay Yugoslavia

The full updated list of all Category B nationalities may be found here.

BAL Analysis: Zimbabwe’s move toward visa liberalization is in step with the African Union’s stated goal of visa-free travel for all African nationals and also extends visa-free travel to non-African countries.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group. For additional information, please contact africa@bal.com.

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