Relocation FAQ
visas?
Depending upon which country you're visiting from, yes, you will need to acquire a visa upon entry, or prior to entry. For those visitors coming from the US, you have the option purchase a multiple entry visa upon arrival, or to obtain a visa online prior to entry. Tanzania offers ONLY multiple entry visas for US passport holders at Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam, and Kilimanjaro International Airport in Moshi. The fee is $100 USD CASH. Please don't make the same mistake the I made my second time flying in, thinking that I could get a single entry visa for $50. I didn't bring enough cash so I had to step out of line just to go to the broken ATM outside, and call my husband to bring cash... basically a big ordeal.
In the past (until about 2020, a multiple entry visa was good for the duration of one year, in 90 day increments. To put it simply, you could stay for the whole year as long as you left the country at least every 90 days to renew the stamp on your passport. But now, since the COVID era, the visitors/ tourist visas are only good for 90 days. you MUST either get an extension or renew your visa after 90 days. This can be done at an immigration office and should be free of charge.
Unofficially, the Tanzanian government has put a hold on the issuance of student visas to a lot of the diaspora. In short, this is because in 2020 and early 2021 there was a large influx of diaspora applying for student visas… for one specific school. This raised a lot of eyebrows and is currently being looked further into by the Tanzania government.
Visit the link below for detailed information on visa types.
https://immigration.go.tz/
CAN I
OWN LAND?
In short, as a non resident of Tanzania, you are not allowed to purchase land. As a foreigner, you are not allowed to purchase land. But don’t despair. There are loopholes. If you build a TRUSTING relationship with a local person, you can get them to purchase the land under their name for you. This is the riskiest option because what if you get into a misunderstanding? The local will have every right to take his or her land back and will be fully protected under the law in doing so.
Under the business visa, you can purchase land if it is for “business purposes” (i.e. you can build a family home and work/ do business out of that home).
Visit the links below for detailed information on land laws & policies:
job
oppor-tunities?
Tanzania is rich in natural resources: natural gas, agriculture and livestock raising, gems and minerals, and plenty more. When you think of job opportunities, think outside of the box. Open yourself to the idea of being involved in a career field that you may have never thought of before. All of the aforementioned fields are very lucrative and potentially fully supporting. There is also a huge market here for licensed educators, people with trades like web design, graphic design, carpentry, and even film and photography.
There are a few websites that you can check out if you are on the market for a job here in Tanzania. Check out the link below:
https://www.brightermonday.co.tz/jobs
VACCINES?
COVID Testing
The CDC website can be a bit confusing if you're visiting for the first time trying to figure out immunization requirements. You have to look at the wording carefully, “required” v.s. “recommended”. Coming from most countries outside of the continent of Africa, there are no required vaccinations, but plenty of recommended ones. If you go off the recommended list on the CDC’s website, then you will be paying upwards of $300 just for these recommendations alone. The only time that immunizations are required are when you are coming from a country that has a prominence in that specific virus or disease. For example: yellow fever is not prominent in North America, but if you are coming into Tanzania and have a long layover in Kenya, they may ask you for a yellow fever card at the border, which usually can be purchased for a fee of $50 USD, weather you actually get the shot or not.
Here’s a link to the CDC website and the Tanzanian Ministry of Health so that you can explore the topic on your own:
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/tanzania
Currently, Tanzania does not require any proof of the COVID vaccine to enter the country. A proof of a negative Real Time Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing or Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests (NAATs) done at a nationally accredited/approved laboratory using sample tested within 96 hours of departure to URT is required. Also, upon entry, a COVID rapid test will be done for the fee of $10 USD or 23,000 TSH.
When departing Tanzania, a PRC test is also required. Here are a few places that you can get it:
Dar es Salaam - Mwanyalamala Hospital $100, Aga Khan Hospital: $150
Arusha - Seliani Hospital (Lutheran Medical Center): $90, Mt. Meru Hospital: $90
Moshi- KMCH Hospital : $90
Zanzibar - Migombani Hospital: $80
Visit the link below for more detailed information.
https://www.de.tzembassy.go.tz/resources/view/travel-advisory-no.8-of-13th-september-2021
HEALTH
CARE?
Healthcare varies vastly depending on which hospital you go to. There are many government - run hospitals here in Tanzania that can treat your BASIC healthcare needs (i.e. food poisoning, common cold, dental services etc.). There are also private hospital where the treatment can range from the above mentioned, to prenatal services, cancer and diabetes treatment to full surgeries. It really just depends on where you go.
Insurance
If you have travelers insurance, they may cover most of your healthcare needs while you're on your trip and possibly for relocation. You are also able to open a file at most hospitals as a foreigner. There is a fee to do this, but I have personally never paid more than $20 USD in doing so.
In some cases, if patients need more advanced medical care, I’ve heard of people going to Kenya on the northern border of Tanzania and receiving healthcare there. I don’t have any personal experience with this, but it is an option.
MALARIA
Here in Tanzania, there are cases of malaria everyday. Contrary to popular belief, its not as bad as people make it out to be. Malaria here is seen along the lines of the flu back in the states. People still work and function everyday if they fave malaria. They take the medicine and keep it pushing. Yes, malaria is a very real thing, and if it was to go untreated, it could be potentially fatal, but mostly to people with weakened immune systems, like children under 2 years of age and the elderly. Malaria is not fatal within and of itself, only to people with weakened immune systems.
Education
Language
There are various types of malaria prevention. One option is purchasing anti- malarial tablets before you come to Tanzania. (Which could cost you a hefty $50 + ) Tanzania also has anti- malarial medicine and medicine available if you were to come down with the virus. Another simple and effective method to prevent against malaria is to simply use insect repellent. There is a wide variety of repellents out here at ever duka la dawa (drug store) and super market. Lemongrass and lemongrass oil is also an excellent repellent if you want to go the natural route.
Mosquito nets are also really handy when it comes to prevention in the home. If you’re staying in a house without screens on the windows, its paramount that you have mosquito nets that cover the beds. From my personal experience Dar es Salaam tends to have more mosquitoes than Arusha. The locals say that its due to the climate and altitude differences. Arusha is much higher in altitude thus, much cooler as well.
From my own observations, Tanzanians take education very seriously. Kids graduate high school around the age of 21, as opposed to the American 18 years of age. They usually study 8 subjects at a time as opposed to 5 or 6.
Tanzania offers both public and private schooling options as well as home schooling. School fees do apply for both. But to just put it in perspective, a private boarding school will cost you anywhere from $2,500 USD per year, per child, possibly up to $20k depending on the school. The schools with this price tag are usually international schools that offer the Cambridge national examinations. An ordinary government school in a middle class neighborhood would cost you around $500 USD per year, per child. There is also an option to home school your children, which a lot of repatriates do. There are quite a few places around with learning materials for children as well as online programs for home schooling.
There s no right or wrong answer to this question. Depending on thee lifestyle that you want to have while visiting, the answer varies. If you in fact are just visiting, then it is not completely necessary to learn Swahili. Just the greetings and a few formalizations will due. On the other hand, if you intend on repatriating, then yes, ABSOLUTELY, you need to learn Kiswahili. One of the things that I regret the most is not learning one word of Kiswahili before I came to Tanzania. Now I’m behind the power curve and I should've been a lot further in my communication skills than I am today. But, hey, lesson learned.
SHIP YOUR HOUSEHOLD ITEMS?
using your Phone
Internet
When you are planning to repatriate, it’s so important to have those little things that will make your transition smooth and comfortable, like your favorite records, ship that raggedy robe and bedroom slippers, ship your favorite books. But other larger or more costly household items, I’d leave them there. Personally, I wouldn't recommend shipping dishes, TVs, or other large household items unless you're ready to part with $7,000 or even more. The cost for the shipping container may not be too expensive, but the port and customs fees will be what kills your savings. Also, if you don't have a resident’s visa at the time of pickup, this could pose a problem.
This same notion goes for shipping cars too. It’s wonderful that you finally paid off that car after 4.5 years and you’re proud. Go you! And to ship the car here to Tanzania won't be as much as you expected. Double win! But once you add up the various port fees: car over 1 ton: 15%, car with steering wheel on the left-hand side: 15%, a car 10 years or older: 15%, a car over a certain horsepower: 15% or >, you may very well end up spending $6,000 just to get your car from the post of Dar es Salaam. In my opinion, its best to sell that car and get a decent used car out here. Lets face it, you could probably use an extra few thousand in your pocket upon relocation.
When preparing to come out to Tanzania for a visit or a full relocation, it is important to make sure that you come out with an unlocked phone. You can check this simply by contacting your current carrier and asking them if your phone is internationally unlocked. If not, once you get here you won’t be able to use the Tanzanian sim cards in your phone. But not to worry, you can either buy a Tanzanian smart phone, starting at around $60 and up, or you can simply get in international plan with your current provider… which can be pricey.
For those that will be using their own unlocked phones, you’ll be able to get service through a provider such as Vodacom, Tigo, Airtel, or Halotel. You can get a monthly data / internet plan and a voice / airtime + SMS text message plan starting at around 30,000 TSH ($13.00 roughly) per month. This will include around 10 gigabytes of data and 300 minutes of talk time. Each company has their own rates so the prices will differ.
Home internet is a must if you’re planning on staying connected in Tanzania. There are a few options: 1. You can purchase a WiFi USB stick from one of the cellular phone companies listed above, which plugs right into the USB port of your computer and you can top up your data plan every month. 2. You can purchase a WiFi router similar to most home WiFi routers that you’ll find in the west, and purchase a data plan for that as well. Personally, we have the home WiFi router and use an unlimited data plan that we top up each month. We use a company called Smile Network and it costs about $85 per month. I don’t have any real complaints about it, but depending upon your area, it may not be a good fit due to the signal strength.