Skip to content

Botswanan visa resources

Botswana visa processing times

Indicative processing times published on the official gov.bw service pages.

Official guidance Regularly updated

Important

This information is for general guidance only. Meeting the requirements does not guarantee your application will be approved.

Processing times published on gov.bw vary by service. Most visas (tourism, visitor, transit, business, investment, employment and study) are quoted at seven to fourteen days.

Permit and long-term routes take longer: a work permit is quoted at fourteen working days, a residence permit at thirty working days, and permanent residence at around six months.

Citizenship routes are the longest: naturalisation is quoted at roughly eighteen months, and naturalisation of a foreign spouse at about one year. These are official estimates and actual times can vary.

Indicative times

  • Visitor / tourism / transit / business / investment / employment / study visas: 7-14 days
  • Work permit: 14 working days
  • Residence permit: 30 working days
  • Permanent residence: approx. 6 months
  • Citizenship (foreign spouse): approx. 1 year
  • Citizenship (naturalisation): approx. 18 months

Next steps

  1. Check the documents you’ll needView documents
  2. How to applyStart here
  3. Choose your visaFind a visa

Official sources

For the most accurate and up-to-date information, always refer to the official government sources.

Verified against official sources · last reviewed 2026-08-21. Information only — not legal advice.