How to Apply for a Ugandan e-Passport in 2026: Step by Step

This one is for Ugandan citizens. If you’re a visitor coming to Uganda, you don’t need any of this: your own passport and a visa are what matter, and our Uganda visa guide covers that.

Every Ugandan passport issued today is an e-passport, with a chip carrying your photo and fingerprints. The Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control (DCIC) runs the whole process, and it starts online. You can’t just walk into the passport office with photos and a form any more. Below is the order things happen in, based on the directorate’s own published steps, plus the small things we see trip people up.

Before you open the portal

Get your papers together first. The form asks for details from them, and you’ll carry them to your appointment. For an adult’s first ordinary passport, the directorate lists:

• Your National ID, or at least your National Identification Number (NIN). The names on your passport will follow your National ID, so if something is misspelt there, fix it with NIRA first.
• A recommendation letter from a Ugandan citizen of good standing, plus a copy of that person’s National ID.
• Documents for your profession, if you want it shown (a certificate or transcript, for example).

Renewing? Add your old passport. Applying for a child? The list is different, and we cover it in our post on children’s passports.

Step 1: Fill in the online form

The official portal is passports.go.ug (it also opens at passports.immigration.go.ug). Accept the disclaimer, answer the short security questions, then complete the application. Take your time. Type names exactly as they appear on your National ID, and double-check your date and place of birth. A wrong letter here can mean a passport that doesn’t match your airline ticket, and correcting it later costs time.

Use a real email address and phone number you check. Some people use a cousin’s or a cyber café’s, and then miss messages about their application.

Step 2: Print the payment advice and pay at the bank

When you submit, the portal gives you a Payment Advice Form. Print it and pay at one of the banks it lists. As of 2026 the directorate quotes UGX 250,000 for a standard 48-page ordinary passport, with an extra UGX 150,000 if you want express processing. Bank charges are on top. Full details are in our passport fees and processing times post. Keep the bank receipt with your other papers.

Step 3: Book your appointment

Back on the portal, use the appointment link to choose a passport centre and a date that suits you, then print the Appointment Form. In Kampala, applications are handled at the main passport office at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with the entrance on Old Port Bell Road. The directorate also has passport offices in Mbarara, Mbale and Gulu, and regional immigration offices in towns such as Jinja, Masaka, Fort Portal, Arua, Hoima, Masindi and Lira that take applications and hand out ready passports.

Book early if you have a trip coming. Appointment slots fill up before the busy travel months and school holidays.

Step 4: Enrolment and biometrics

On the day, go in person. Nobody can enrol for you. Carry:

• The printed Appointment Form
• Your bank payment receipt
• Your National ID (the original, plus a photocopy just in case)
• The recommendation letter and your recommender’s ID copy
• Your old passport, if you’re renewing

The officer checks your documents, then takes your photo, fingerprints and signature. You don’t need to bring passport photos for this. Dress as you’d like to look for ten years, and avoid white tops if the backdrop is pale.

Step 5: Collection

You’ll be told when and where to collect. In Kampala, ready passports are collected at the Kyambogo collection centre, which the ministry set up to take pressure off the main office. Check the name, date of birth and photo page before you leave the counter. Sign it when asked. The ordinary e-passport is valid for ten years.

Applying from abroad

Ugandans living abroad can renew through the Uganda missions that have e-passport enrolment. Washington DC, London and Pretoria were the first, and centres have since opened in places such as Ottawa, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh. You still apply on the same portal, then attend the mission for biometrics. The passport is printed in Kampala and couriered back, so allow extra time. Some missions only handle renewals, so a first passport usually has to be done at home.

Practical tips

• Only use the official portal. Sites that look official and ask you to pay a “processing fee” by card or mobile money are not the directorate.
• Choose your recommender with care. They should know you well and be easy to reach by phone, in case the office needs to confirm anything.
• Don’t book flights on a passport you haven’t collected. Wait until it’s in your hand, then book with the exact spelling on the data page.
• Check the visa rules for where you’re going. Many countries want six months’ validity left and a couple of blank pages.
• Keep a photo of the data page on your phone and in your email. It makes a lost passport much easier to deal with.

If the process feels like a lot on top of planning a trip, we can help. We’ll talk you through the form, tell you what to carry, and once the passport is ready, sort your air tickets too. See our passport assistance page or get in touch.