African Union Passport
Common passport document for citizens of African Union member states
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The African Union Passport is a proposed passport document that is set to replace existing nationally issued African Union member state passports and exempt bearers from having to obtain any visas for all 55 states in Africa.[1][2][3] It was announced on July 17, 2016, at the 27th Ordinary Session of the African Union that was held in Kigali in Rwanda by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and the late Chadian President Idriss Déby.[4][5][6] The passport was planned to be rolled out and ready for use at borders worldwide by 2023,[7] however the rollout has since been delayed indefinitely.[8]
| African Union passport | |
|---|---|
The front cover of an African Union diplomatic passport | |
 The picture page of an African Union diplomatic passport | |
| Type | Passport |
| Issued by |  African Union |
| First issued | July 17, 2016 |
| Purpose | Identification |
| Eligibility | Citizen of an African Union member state |
Future proposed endevors for the passports have included the planned initiative for visa free travel – known as "Visa Free Africa" under the auspice of the African Union.[9] and eventual freedom of movement within the bloc.[10]
Types
There are three types of African Union passport that will be issued:
- Ordinary passport
- These passports are issued to citizens and are intended for occasional travel, such as vacations and business trips. They contain 32 pages, and are valid for 5 years.
- Official/Service passport
- These passports are issued to officials attached to government institutions who have to travel on official business.
- Diplomatic passport
- Issued to diplomats and consuls for work-related travel, and to their accompanying dependents.
- Temporary passport
- These passports are issued to travelling citizens or natives of African countries that cannot get hold of their passports due to various reasons including robbery, theft or accidents. They may last for 6 months to a year.
