VisaBotswana raises the ordinary passport fee to 400 pula from 1 November
A government report says revised charges took effect on 1 November. Citizens applying abroad should confirm the local amount and distinguish a replacement passport from emergency travel documentation.
Official source date: 2026-10-29 · Change takes effect: 2026-11-01
Last verified against linked sources:
Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
The announced ordinary-passport charge rises to 400 pula
Botswana’s government DailyNews reported on 29 October that revised passport charges would take effect on 1 November 2026. It gives an ordinary-passport fee of P400, an increase of P140 from P260. Children under 16 are listed at P200, while official and diplomatic passports are P600 and P800 respectively. Citizens preparing an application should therefore establish the applicable new category rather than budgeting from a previously saved fee quotation.
The report gives P2,000 for replacement of a lost, stolen or soiled e-passport, and P100 for emergency travel documentation. These are different services: the emergency document is not necessarily suitable for continuing an international itinerary. The report attributes the adjustment to the minister. VisaWand did not conduct the reported interview or obtain mission-specific conversions or payment instructions.
The overseas checklist distinguishes renewal evidence from a loss report
The Ministry of International Relations’ consular-services guidance directs citizens abroad to the relevant Botswana mission. For renewals and replacements it lists a completed form, two passport photographs, citizenship evidence and payment proof. An ordinary renewal uses the expired passport; a lost or stolen passport requires a police report, while an affidavit explains the loss or damage. Report a theft or loss to local authorities and preserve the resulting record before arranging the replacement file.
The ministry describes payment through the mission’s bank account and says cash is not accepted. It allows collection or mailing according to arrangements with the receiving office, and gives an estimated eight to twelve weeks for routine overseas processing. That estimate is not a deadline guarantee. Its emergency-document section describes one-way travel back to Botswana following passport loss or theft. Ask the mission which document fits the intended journey, rather than treating all emergency documents as unrestricted passports.
Germany’s page has different fees and submission instructions
The Botswana embassy in Germany says consular applicants must attend personally and cannot use representatives. For a lost e-passport it lists valid Omang identification, a police report, a covering letter explaining the circumstances, the embassy application, two recent colour photographs and citizenship evidence where applicable. It also asks for parental identity details. These local requirements make the embassy checklist useful even where a general ministry page describes remote submission options.
However, Germany’s page still quotes 26 euros for an ordinary adult e-passport, 126 euros for a lost one and two euros for an emergency document. It permits cash or bank transfer, whereas the ministry’s general page excludes cash. Those published instructions are not reconciled with the November pula schedule or each other. Confirm the charge, payment method and appointment directly with the receiving embassy before paying or sending documents. The general ministry description should not be used to assume Germany accepts a representative, postal submission or a particular older fee.
Domestic emergency-document guidance describes a different journey
The government’s electronic emergency travel document service describes urgent travel to neighbouring countries except South Africa. It lists adult Omang evidence, parental identity information, citizenship certificates where relevant and the old passport or a police report or sworn affidavit for a loss. For children it specifies birth and parental or guardian evidence, including guardianship documentation where applicable. A parent or guardian should check the child’s presence and document requirements with the issuing office before attendance.
That domestic service is described as available through immigration offices and missions, with an indicated 24-hour service period. It should not be assumed to override the foreign ministry’s separate one-way-return description for a citizen stranded abroad. The pages concern materially different travel situations and do not establish one universally accepted emergency document for every destination or transit point. Confirm the actual document, route and receiving authority’s requirements before travelling. Neither a published processing estimate nor proof of paying a document fee establishes that another country or carrier will accept it for the planned journey.
