No e-passport, no visa: Foreign Affairs ministry says

The Ministry of foreign affairs has said machine-readable passports will expire on August 31, 2019.

A statement from the ministry said this will allow for the roll out of the new generation passports also known as e-passports.

“While allowable validity period of a passport varies from one jurisdiction to the next, it is an international norm while applying for a visa or entering another country, a passport must be valid for at least six (6) months,” the statement from Amb. Macharia Kamau reads.

The Foreign Affairs PS noted that the Head of Public Service had issued a circular to all public servants which requires them to acquire the new e-passports before the August deadline.

He said the ministry will not be in a position to facilitate the issuance of visa to travellers who do not have the electronic passports.

According to the ministry, the new generation passports will have more security features than the previous machine-read ones.

They will also eliminate the need for an East African passport as agreed by the African Union.

The ministry had earlier announced that all Kenyan passport holders will be required to switch to the new document by September 2.

Applicants are required to apply for the e-passport on the e-citizen platform that prompts one to enter identification and residential details of parents, spouse and children where applicable.

The online application process concludes with payment of passport fees which can range from Ksh.4,550 to Ksh.7,550 depending on pages needed.

After the online process, the applicant is expected to print three copies of the invoice as proof of payment to be handed over at the Immigration Department.

Other documents to be handed over include original and photocopies of birth certificates and ID, copy of previous passport if any, parents’ national ID or death certificate where applicable, children’s birth certificate (if any), copy of recommender’s ID card and three passport-size photographs.