![]() | This article needs to be updated.(September 2022) |
African Union passport | |
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![]() The front cover of an African Union diplomatic passport | |
![]() The picture page of an African Union diplomatic passport | |
Type | Passport |
Issued by | ![]() |
First issued | July 17, 2016 |
Purpose | Identification |
Eligibility | Citizen of an African Union member state |
The African Union Passport is a common passport document that is set to replace existing nationally issued African Union member state passports and exempt bearers from having to obtain any visas for all 55 states in Africa. [1] [2] [3] It was launched on July 17, 2016, at the 27th Ordinary Session of the African Union that was held in Kigali in Rwanda by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and the late Chadian President Idriss Déby. [4] [5] [6] As of June 2018, the passport was planned to be rolled out and ready for use at borders worldwide by 2020, [7] however the rollout has since been delayed into 2021. [8]
There are three types of African Union passport that will be issued:
The passport has inscriptions in Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, and Swahili. [9] The African Union anthem's lyrics are printed on the page immediately after the picture page.
A visa is a conditional authorization granted by a polity to a foreigner that allows them to enter, remain within, or leave its territory. Visas typically include limits on the duration of the foreigner's stay, areas within the country they may enter, the dates they may enter, the number of permitted visits, or if the individual can work in the country in question. Visas are associated with the request for permission to enter a territory and thus are, in most countries, distinct from actual formal permission for an alien to enter and remain in the country. In each instance, a visa is subject to entry permission by an immigration official at the time of actual entry and can be revoked at any time. Visa evidence most commonly takes the form of a sticker endorsed in the applicant's passport or other travel document but may also exist electronically. Some countries no longer issue physical visa evidence, instead recording details only in immigration databases.
The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation composed of eight countries in East Africa. The member states are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania. Salva Kiir Mayardit, the president of South Sudan, is the current EAC chairman. The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7 July 2000.
A biometric passport is a traditional passport that has an embedded electronic microprocessor chip, which contains biometric information that can be used to authenticate the identity of the passport holder. It uses contactless smart card technology, including a microprocessor chip and antenna embedded in the front or back cover, or centre page, of the passport. The passport's critical information is printed on the data page of the passport, repeated on the machine readable lines and stored in the chip. Public key infrastructure (PKI) is used to authenticate the data stored electronically in the passport chip, supposedly making it expensive and difficult to forge when all security mechanisms are fully and correctly implemented.
Visa requirements for Bosnia and Herzegovina citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Rwandan passport is issued to Rwandan citizens for international travel. Rwanda started issuing East African CommunityBiometric Passport also known as E-Passport(With which entry to all east African countries is visa-free) in June 2019 replacing the old ones that will only stay valid until June 2021, The new passports are valid for five years and ten years.
Visa requirements for Hungarian citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of Hungary by the authorities of other states.
Visa requirements for Albanian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other nations placed on citizens of Albania.
Visa requirements for Croatian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Croatia.
Visa requirements for Emirati citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Visa requirements for Indonesian citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of Indonesia by the authorities of other states.
Visa requirements for Cameroonian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Cameroon. As of 2 July 2019, Cameroonian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 46 countries and territories, ranking the Cameroonian passport 96th in terms of travel freedom (tied with passports from Burundi, Congo and Liberia according to the Henley & Partners Passport Index.
Visa requirements for Comorian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Comoros.
The Republic of Rwanda, a member of the East African Community, allows citizens of all countries that are not visa-exempt to obtain a visa on arrival. In addition, they may also obtain an e-Visa online before departure.
India–Rwanda relations are the foreign relations between the Republic of India and the Republic of Rwanda. India is represented in Rwanda through its High Commission in Kigali which opened on 15 August 2018. Rwanda has been operating its High Commission in New Delhi since 1999 and appointed its first resident High Commissioner in 2001.
Kenya has abolished visa requirements for all foreign visitors from 1 January 2024, and instead implemented an Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) system.
Visitors to Ghana must obtain a visa from one of the Ghanaian diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the countries or territories that are either visa exempt or whose citizens may obtain a visa on arrival.
Visa requirements for Central African citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Central African Republic. As of 2 July 2019, Central African Republic citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 49 countries and territories, ranking the Central African passport 94th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index.
Visa requirements for crew members are administrative entry restrictions imposed by countries on members of the crew during transit or turnaround.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a free trade area encompassing most of Africa. It was established in 2018 by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which has 43 parties and another 11 signatories, making it the largest free-trade area by number of member states, after the World Trade Organization, and the largest in population and geographic size, spanning 1.3 billion people across the world's second largest continent.