Rwanda border technology

Visa on arrival and online visas

The Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration says that from 1 January 2018 citizens of all countries may get a visa on arrival without prior application ¹. Citizens of African Union, Commonwealth and La Francophonie member states get a visa on arrival with the fee waived for visits of 30 days ¹. East African Community citizens receive a pass or entry visa free of charge on arrival for six months ¹.

The directorate lists a group of countries whose citizens get a free visa on arrival for 90 days. It includes Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Singapore and Qatar ¹. It says visa fees must not exceed 50 USD for a single entry visa or 70 USD for multiple entry ¹.

Travellers who need a visa can apply online or at a Rwandan mission before departure, and online applicants can pay online or on arrival ¹. The page links to the Irembo government portal for the application ¹. It warns that no single agent is authorised to apply on travellers' behalf ¹.

E-gates for Rwandan travellers

The New Times reported on 20 May 2012 that the Directorate of Immigration and Emigration launched automatic passenger clearance for arriving Rwandan nationals at Kigali International Airport ⁴. Two electronic gates were installed. A traveller scans the passport to open the first gate and a fingerprint opens the second, in about 17 seconds, as reported ⁴. The report does not name a supplier ⁴.

A directorate presentation titled e-Immigration Services, dated November 2015 and published on the ICAO website, gave 16 seconds for self-service clearance ³. It listed two e-gates clearing Rwandans at Kigali International Airport and ten e-gates at Poids-Lourds, which it called the busiest border post in the country ³. It said Rwandans are cleared with passports or ID cards, and it names no supplier ³.

The EAC e-passport and the ICAO PKD

The 2015 presentation said Rwanda started an electronic passport project in 2014 and had asked ICAO's Technical Cooperation Bureau to help define its PKI and PKD requirements and advise on border system upgrades ³.

Xinhua, in a report carried by the Ghanaian Times on 1 July 2019, quoted Director General Francois Regis Gatarayiha as saying Rwandans could start applying for the common East Africa e-passport ⁵. The report said the chip holds the holder's biodata and biometric information and that the database uses an automated fingerprint system ⁵. It gives no fee and names no supplier ⁵.

The ICAO PKD participant list shows Rwanda with a joining date of 23 July 2020 ⁶.

Entry points

The directorate lists Kigali International Airport and Bugesera International Airport as international airports, Kamembe as a local airport and the lake ports of Nkora and Ruganda ². It lists six land border posts each with Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi, and Rusumo with Tanzania ². People living near the frontier may receive a border pass, or jeton, under bilateral or regional agreements ².

Electronic cargo tracking

A News Times report republished by TradeMark Africa on 27 March 2017 said the Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) commissioned its Electronic Cargo Tracking System at its Kigali headquarters ⁷. It said the system cost US$4.5 million and was funded by the UK Department for International Development through TradeMark East Africa ⁷. The report names no supplier ⁷.

A Coast Week report republished on the same date said the regional system connects Rwanda with Uganda and Kenya to track transit cargo on the Northern Corridor from Mombasa ⁸. It uses an e-seal with 60 days of power, monitored over GPRS, with routes geo-fenced by GPS ⁸. IPP Media reported on 1 October 2018 that Tanzania and Burundi had not approved the system ⁹.