Ukraine Reinstates e-Visa for Just Three African Nations

On 17 February 2025, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ukrainian government announced the reinstatement of Ukraine’s e-visa program. The program was initially suspended in 2022 due to the ongoing conflict with Russia. After reinstatement, the program will only be available for citizens of 45 countries, including three African nations.

The Ukrainian e-visa program was initiated to simplify travel for both tourists and Ukrainian border control forces in April 2018. It enabled visa-free travel for eligible citizens for purposes of tourism, business, study, medical treatment, sports, and journalism.

Citizens could apply for an e-visa to travel to Ukraine for up to 30 days. Travelers would no longer be required to book face-to-face appointments either, with the entire application process conducted online.

The 45 countries eligible to apply for the Ukrainian e-visa will include China, India, Malaysia, and the Philippines, among others. Notably, the list of eligible nations excludes African countries such as Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt which previously accounted for almost a quarter of foreign students using the e-visa to travel to Ukraine for study, according to the BBC.

Eligible citizens from Mauritius, Seychelles and South Africa will be able to apply once the e-visa program is reinstated. Whether the program will eventually expand to include more African nations remains to be seen.