KAZA "Univisa" - working well in Victoria Falls, but there are a few glitches elsewhere.

Wild Zambezi.com • 2 February 2015

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First feedback from visitors to the Victoria Falls area indicates that the newly-introduced KAZA UNIVISA (which was launched in November last year and allows entry to both Zimbabwe and Zambia for a single visa payment of US$50) is working well – PROVIDED that your travel focus is the Victoria Falls/Livingstone/Kazungula area.

Visitors from 40 eligible countries are able to obtain the new 30-day KAZA Visas at Harare, Victoria Falls, Lusaka and Livingstone airports, the Victoria Falls road border (Zimbabwe/Zambia) and the Kazungula road border (Zimbabwe/Zambia/Botswana). 

However, visitors who want to cross between Zimbabwe and Zambia but who are not entering or exiting in the Victoria Falls/Kazungula area are having challenges. 

It seems that the immigration authorities at the Kariba and Chirundu road borders are not operating the new visa system.  This means that visitors who have already obtained a KAZA-Visa are being inconvenienced in having to pay extra for another visa if they wish to cross the border at these points. 

Similarly, road visitors entering Zimbabwe at Beitbridge, Plumtree or other Zimbabwean border crossings (other than at Victoria Falls) and wanting to travel onwards from Zimbabwe into Zambia, are not able to purchase a KAZA Univisa at these entry points.  They are forced to buy a visa for each country as per the previous system. 

WildZambezi.com has highlighted this problem to the relevant authorities and via the KAZA Visa website.  We have told them that “It is not helpful to visitors when they are promised  “one-visa-for-both-countries”, but are faced with having to purchase yet another one at extra cost because the system has not considered travel from the KAZA area into and out of other borderposts linking Zimbabwe with Zambia.”

This operational challenge has been acknowledged and the Zimbabwe tourism authorities have been asked to respond as a matter of urgency.   We await the outcome.

For more information, visit www.kazavisa.info

Comments (3)

Hello All, Does anyone know if this issue has been resolved? I am particularly interested in knowing if it has been resolved at the Zimbabwean Kariba Road border point, as we intend to be travelling from Zambia to Zimbabwe via this route next month, and will be crossing back into Zambia after a few days. Thanks

Anna - Marie1 September 2015
Hi Anna-Marie We have followed this up on your behalf and have this to report: Apparently you still cannot purchase a KAZA Univisa from immigration authorities at the Kariba (or Chirundu) borderposts between Zambia and Zimbabwe (although they tell me that they hope this situation will change soon). However, if you have previously obtained a KAZA Univisa via immigration through Harare or Lusaka airports, or in Victoria Falls/Livingstone then this will be accepted when you pass through the Kariba borderpost. I hope this information is of use to you. WILD ZAMBEZI

In my view the Uni Visa was introduced to help the tourist to visit the Golden Triangle. And they are precisely meant for the area. We can suggest the same can be introduced at other border posts. We can suggest once someone is in possession of Uni Visa he can be allowed to enter Zambia or Zimbabwe through any other border post as he has visa.

Shah3 February 2015

My neice visited from Australia in December and experienced precisely this problem. I only report this now to add weight in numbers to the failures in Kariba. She purchased the $50 Univisa at Kazangula, entered and departed Botswana after a five day stay; departed Vic Falls, and enter Zambia at Livingstone easily but on arrival at Kariba on the same day, spent two hours trying very hard to get the not-user-friendly Immigration officials there to call Vic Falls issuing office to verify her visa etc. She failed and had to pay for another visa to enter Zimbabwe. It's a set back to an otherwise most welcome facility. Let's hope ZTA or someone might be able to enlighten Kariba Immigration about this facility so they too honour the agreement.

Bene Nicholson2 February 2015

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