Passport Issuance

The rules governing passport application procedure is contained in the Immigration Act CAP 3 Volume 1V Laws of the Gambia 2009.

Under our current laws, the Director General of Immigration is the sole controller and issuer of Passports in the Gambia.

Types of Passports

MACHINE READABLE PASSPORT (MRP):

The MRP is the conventional passport issued by the Director General of Immigration to Gambian citizens. It has perfected the entire ICAO standard for a conventional passport for travelling. Its application and operationalization in the Gambia dates back in 1992 following guidelines and recommendations made by the ICAO for all contracting states to begin introducing the MRP in their states on or before 1995.

BIOMETRIC PASSPORT:

The passport categories are Diplomatic, Service and Ordinary passport.

  • Diplomatic, Service and Ordinary passports are the official Gambia government accredited passports in place.
  • While the issuance of Emergency Travel Certificate and the Ordinary passports are directly under the sole control and direction of the Director General of Immigration, the Diplomatic and Service Passports are under the control and directions of the Office of the President through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Gambians Abroad. However, the Gambia Immigration Department at the technical side is responsible for the production of both Diplomatic and Service passports following approval from Office of the President and protocoled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Gambians Abroad for production.  
  • The colour of the Diplomatic Passport is ‘’Red’, the Service Passport is light blue. The outer colour for the ordinary passports is dark green. It is important to note that while the Machine Readable passport contained the Coat of Arm of the Gambia, the Biometric Passport contain the symbol of ECOWAS. Both passports in place currently contain 32 pages with both visible and invisible security futures embedded in them.
  • The life span of the passports is five years’ validity period.
  • The fees for the passports are determined by the government of the Gambia through the Ministry of Finance and implemented or enforce by the Ministry of Interior through the Gambia Immigration Department.
  • Biometric Passport: D5100.00
  • Machine Readable Passport (MRP): D3100.00
  • Diplomatic Passport: Gratis
  • Service Passport: Gratis
  • Emergency Travel Certificate: D1100
Diplomatic Passport

The Gambia Immigration Department (GID) is a player in the issuance of Diplomatic Passport to legible persons. Implies to say, the processing, interview, if any, and any other administrative issues relating therein in determining who acquires the diplomatic passport or not rely solely in the Office of the President and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Essentially therefore, the GID only receives processed application forms together with the designated person under the stewardship of a Foreign Affairs escort and print the passport application been approved.

The applications form is being kept and controlled by the foreign Affairs Ministry. When the printing is done, the GID keeps the applicant’s information in its data base and necessary records made in the records books and the passport in question will then be signed by the foreign Affairs escort before it is delivered to him or her.

Like the Diplomatic passport, the Service Passport is relatively being controlled and managed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is usually issued to Civil Servants working under the employment of the Gambia Government and who have at least reached grade 10 and above of the pay scale of the civil service. Civil servants who attain such grade may apply through their heads of institutions or departments to facilitate the issuance of the service passport. The Foreign Affairs Ministry is the sole authority to determine the approval of the application request for service passport.

Where an application for a service passport is duly approved by the Foreign Affairs, such application form, the applicant and the foreign affairs escort will proceed to the Immigration Headquarters for the printing of the Passport. After the passport is printed, the foreign affairs escort will sign for it to indicate printing and delivery of such passports to him by the immigration officer. These records are entered into our designated books of records and the personal informational data of the applicant is also stored in the system.

The management, control, processing, issuance and approval of ordinary passports, which include Machine Readable Passport and Biometric Passport, are vested in the Director General of Immigration. Ordinary Passport is for any person whose citizenship as a Gambian is confirmed under the citizenship and nationality Act and other relevant laws of the Gambia.

Where one desires to acquire ordinary Passport, the applicant must proof first that he or she is Gambian by birth, descent, naturalization and or marriage or registration in case of a person who was born before his or her parents naturalized to become a Gambian. Upon establishing these facts, the following procedures are followed for the Machine Readable Passport:

  1. Applicant purchases passport application form at a cost of D100. at the Immigration Head Office. Thereafter, the form is filled by the applicant and notarized by a notary officer in section 15 in the application form.
  2. The application file is then taken to the prescribed banks such as EcoBank, GT Bank, Vista Bank or AGIB Bank for payment of the passport cost stated above.
  3. Upon payment, the application file and payment receipt are submitted to the MRP Submission Office for necessary processing and guidance.

The other important parts of the MRP application which is relevant for any application process to be completed is that the applicant must provide and attached at least two passport size photos, birth certificate, national ID card and or Alkalis or chief’s attestation and the signature of the applicant with proof of residence abroad.

For the biometric passport, the following procedures are involved:

  1. Applicant purchases and obtains a biometric passport form at any EcoBank branch upon paying the prescribed fees.
  2. Thereafter, the form is filled by the applicant and notarized by a notary officer in section 15 of the application form.
  3. Upon completion, the application file and payment receipt are submitted to the Biometric Passport Processing centre for necessary action and guidance.

Note: All first-time applicants for ordinary passports are subjected to vetting and interview procedures before approval. For renewal, applicants could only submit a copy of the expired passports with application form for production.

A citizen of the Gambia who lost his or her passport is required by law to report it to the nearest police station for the documentation and full inquiry into the circumstances of such lost.

 Where on the completion of the inquiry, the police inquiry could not recover the lost passport; and where there were no adverse, intentional or deliberate action on the part of the claimant by the police such as, willful damage, destructions and or selling of the passport to a third party, the police may issue such person a police report as an evidence of such lost. In addition to the police report, the applicant shall, also depose to an affidavit confirming in detail the events leading to the circumstances of such lost.

Passport Lost Abroad

Where a passport is reportedly lost abroad, the loss of such passport shall be reported to the police of the jurisdiction within where the passport was lost. After when the full circumstances of the passport is verified and established, a police report may be issued by the authority conducting the investigation. The effect of this certificate is to enable the holder to be able to acquire a new passport especially, where at the time of the lost, the passport was still valid.It is important to note that where a passport is said to have been lost, the Immigration Department has by law the authority to withhold the renewal process for three and not more than six months.

 In extreme cases, where the passport is declared lost, and evidence arise to prove that it was otherwise willfully damaged, destroyed and or sold to another, such person may be denied another one for up to a period of  18 months. Similarly, where a Gambian citizen is deported abroad following a conviction on drug related offences and having completed all the substantive acquired legal processes, the Director General may deny issuance of passport to such person for a period of 10 years.

Where however a passport is acquired through false declaration pertaining to the applicant’s nationality; or through false statutory declaration; or through the use of a seyfo’s certificate the informant who gave the information is liable to conviction, fine or both.

Generally, passports when issued to a person is expected to capture a specific data of the holder that must, except in rare cases, be fixed and permanently aligned to the holder. However, this rule is not without an exception. The exceptions to these rules are the particulars of a holder of a passport may change on the occurrence of the following events:

  • Following marriage where a bride intends to formally used the husband’s family name;
  • Following religious conversion where one intends to change name and surname on religious grounds
  • Following professional and academic qualifications where one intends to use a particular academic or professional tittle i.e. Dr, Mr., Mrs., Miss, Prof, Rtd.
  • Following misspelling in a passport due to human error.
Requirements for Changes

Where a holder of a passport wishes to apply for changes in the particulars of his or her passport, he or she is to produce as a matter of requirement the following and which unless it is provided, the application may not be granted.

  • A birth certificate depicting the requested particular(s) of the applicant which should be older than the passport sought to be change
  • Deed Poll
  • Marriage and/or Divorce Certificate
  • Any other documents as may be useful to support the changes been sought.

Gambian citizens resident abroad may apply for passport on the basis of replacement or application on first instance.

Where the application is on first instance in respect of a child below 18, such application shall, in addition to the child birth certificate, also contain the parent(s) supporting document(s). The significance of these administrative checks are:

  1. to prevent any child from travelling without the consent of parent(s);
  2. restrains against any potential child trafficking; and
  3. also to prevent the travel of a child who may be a subject of custody proceedings.

Two passport sizes of the child applicant shall be provided and where applicable, signature and a document proving that such child are resident outside Gambia.

Where the applicant is applying on first instance and is an adult, he or she shall produce his or her ID Card, birth certificate, proof of residence abroad, specimen of signature, and two passport sizes photos. Where either the birth certificate or ID card is not available, the applicant’s parent supporting document must be provided; and such parent whose document is so provided shall depose to an affidavit of support of birth as an evidence of close affinity to the applicant. The parent who deposed to such affidavit may, subject to the discretion of the interview panel, appear for interview on behalf of the applicant.

Our current institutional policy regarding acquisition of passport provides for all Gambians resident in the country to apply for Biometric passport except where applying for ECOWAS Biometric Passport is under the circumstances impracticable. The only exceptions to these rules are that:

  1. In case of a newly born baby who is rather too very young to be enroll biometrically;
  2. Patient admitted in hospital and who by the nature of their sickness cannot appear for enrollment;
  3. Person(s) who are extremely very old and infeasible to appear for interview; in case of the acquisition of Biometric passport

Under the circumstances, where a Gambian citizen lost his or her passport or becomes a destitute, to enable him or her return to the Gambia, the Gambia diplomatic or consular service in that country shall issue him or her Emergency Passport to travel back to the Gambia

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