How to apply for a Rwandan e-passport

What you need

• Age 16 and over: your National ID (indangamuntu). Under 16: a child ID, or no document
• A phone number and/or email address
• Photo on a white background and your signature (JPG), plus a copy of your ID (PDF), each under 500 KB
• Mobile Money, Airtel Money, BK or a bank card to pay

Steps

1. Go to irembo.gov.rw (no account needed) and choose the e-passport application.
2. Enter your ID number so your details load, then choose the passport type and validity.
3. Upload your photo, signature and ID copy, and choose where you will collect the passport: DGIE office, district office or a Rwandan embassy.
4. Submit. You get a billing number starting with 88. Pay it online or through MoMo, Airtel Money or a bank.
5. If Immigration asks you to come in for fingerprints and a photo, go on the date in the SMS with your ID.
6. When you get the SMS that it's ready, collect the passport in person at the office you chose.

Tips

• Lost a passport issued before 20 June 2022? Apply for an "e-passport replacement", not a new e-passport, and attach the certificate of loss from RIB.
• Check how long your destination country needs your passport to stay valid, and renew early.
• Keep your Irembo application number to check status.

Official sources

• Irembo: FAQs about e-passports
• Irembo: how to apply for an e-passport
• Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration

Last checked: 2 November 2026 against Irembo support pages. The 5-year adult fee wasn't on Irembo's own pages. If something here is out of date, tell us so we can fix it.