Dar es Salaam is where almost every foreign visa file in Tanzania gets lodged. The embassies sit along the Msasani peninsula and in the city centre, and the outsourced visa centres are clustered around Maktaba Square and Masaki. If you live in Kinondoni, Ilala, Temeke or out towards Kigamboni, you can usually do your biometrics in a morning and be back at work after lunch. This page is for people who live here, Tanzanians and the large Indian, Kenyan, Chinese, Pakistani and Filipino communities alike. It covers who takes your application, what each checklist actually says about flights (Germany's wording will surprise you), how the US rules changed for Tanzanian passports in 2026, and which routes out of Julius Nyerere International look natural on paper. We are a web-only service; there is no DummyTicketPrice desk anywhere in Dar.
Dar es Salaam at a glance
| Item | What applies to a Dar resident (checked October 2026) |
|---|---|
| Airport | Julius Nyerere International (DAR), listed as an international airport by the Tanzania Airports Authority[12] |
| Germany (Schengen) | TLScontact in Dar es Salaam; the embassy also covers the Comoros[1] |
| Germany's flight wording | "Flight itinerary (NO flight booking !!!)"[1] |
| Netherlands | VFS Global, Dar es Salaam; also takes residents of Rwanda and North or South Kivu[2] |
| Sweden and Denmark | Lodged at VFS Global in Dar; decided by the embassies in Nairobi[4][5] |
| United States | US Embassy Dar es Salaam keeps routine visa work after the August 2026 regional changes[7] |
| UK and Canada | Both use VFS Global centres in Dar[9][11] |
| Our fee | $9 per traveller, one way or return, paid online by card |
Does the German embassy in Dar want a flight booking?
No, and it says so in capital letters. The German Embassy's own visa page lists, for tourist and private trips, a "Flight itinerary (NO flight booking !!!)", and the business section repeats the idea with a round-trip itinerary and "NO flight booking!!!".[1] That is about as clear as consular writing gets.
So what should you hand over? A plain itinerary: the flights you intend to take, with dates and flight numbers, printed from an airline or travel site schedule search. Germany is asking for your plan, not for a seat held in your name. Honestly, you do not need to buy anything from us for a German file lodged in Dar. If you already have a reservation for some other reason, it shows the same plan, but nobody at TLS is asking you to create one.
Three other lines on that page matter more than the flight:
- Re-entry permit. Non-Tanzanians have to show a current residency or work permit allowing them back into Tanzania once the trip is over.[1]
- Timing. Processing is usually 15 calendar days, and the embassy asks you to apply well ahead of travel and not to chase status updates in the meantime.[1]
- Checklists live on the TLS site. The embassy points you to TLScontact for category checklists and appointments.[1]
How do the Dutch centre and the Nordic files work from Dar?
The Netherlands sends everyone to VFS Global in Dar es Salaam. Rwandan residents and people living in the DRC's two Kivu provinces use the same centre, so you may queue alongside people who flew in from Kigali or Goma.[2] Apply no earlier than six months before the trip (nine for seafarers) and at least 15 days before you fly.[2] The Dutch page links to a checklist on the VFS site for your purpose; Netherlands Worldwide's general tourism list asks for a booking under your own name for entering and leaving Schengen, and adds that you need not pay for a ticket.[3] For a Dutch file, then, a held reservation fits the wording.
Sweden and Denmark are different in one practical way: the people who decide are in Kenya. Sweden's embassy page sends Tanzania residents to VFS Global at Maktaba Square Business Park, 4th floor, Wing B, with the decision made by the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi.[4] Denmark's VFS information says files from Dar are decided in Nairobi too, that the VFS service fee is paid at I&M Bank in Maktaba Square, and that a courier charge of 6 euros is compulsory for Dar applicants.[5]
Our advice for Nordic files: add a week to whatever timeline you had in mind, because passports travel to Nairobi and back. That also changes when you should order a reservation, which we come back to below.
What changed at the US Embassy in Dar in 2026?
Two things, and neither is about flights. First, the August 2026 shake-up of US visa work in Africa. From 1 August 2026, routine visa services stopped at 25 posts in sub-Saharan Africa, from Abuja to Windhoek, and moved to regional hubs.[7] Dar es Salaam is not on that list, so residents here still book interviews locally, and you may meet more applicants from neighbouring countries in the waiting room.
Second, Presidential Proclamation 10998. The embassy states that from 1 January 2026, Tanzanian citizens are restricted for visitor, student and exchange categories (B, F, M, J) and for most immigrant visas, barring a limited exception.[6] Even when a Tanzanian otherwise qualifies for a B1/B2 visa, it is not printed until a bond, which can reach $20,000, is paid through the link the officer supplies.[6] The bond applies wherever a Tanzanian applies.
If you hold another passport and live in Dar, the embassy page says expedite requests from third-country nationals need a Tanzanian residency card or permit uploaded with the request.[6] Washington's broader advice still stands: no ticket purchases before a visa is in your passport.[8] For the interview itself, a reservation is purely optional. We would not order one unless you personally find it easier to explain your dates with a printout in hand.
Dutch or Nordic appointment at VFS this week?
$9 buys a held booking with a live PNR, and it reaches your inbox in roughly ten minutes.
Do UK or Canadian files from Dar need a flight booking?
The UK: no. VFS Global took over UK visa appointments in Tanzania from 19 November 2024.[9] The Home Office's guide to visitor evidence puts "flight bookings (unless transiting)" in the group of documents that are not useful.[10] Enter your planned dates on the application and concentrate on bank records, your employer's letter and the reason you will come back to Dar.
Canada: IRCC lists a visa application centre in Dar es Salaam for biometrics and passport handling.[11] The document list is generated by your online application, so read what it asks for. If it mentions a travel itinerary, a reservation is a reasonable way to show one; if it says nothing, we would leave it out.
Which embassies in Dar want what?
| Destination | Where you lodge it in Dar | Official wording on flights | What we'd do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | TLScontact[1] | "Flight itinerary (NO flight booking !!!)"[1] | Plain schedule printout; no reservation needed |
| Netherlands | VFS Global[2] | Booking in your name; purchase not required[3] | Held reservation |
| Sweden, Denmark | VFS Global; decided in Nairobi[4][5] | Follow the VFS checklist for your purpose | Reservation ordered late, after the slot is fixed |
| United States | US Embassy[6] | Hold off on tickets until approval[8] | Up to you |
| United Kingdom | VFS Global[9] | Flight bookings listed as not useful[10] | Usually skip |
| Canada | VFS Global[11] | Depends on your personalised list | Only if the list asks |
Living in Dar on a residence permit: what changes?
Your permit becomes the most closely read page in the file. Germany says it outright for non-Tanzanians: the permit must let you back into Tanzania when the trip ends.[1] The Dutch general checklist wants proof of legal residence, and a residence permit needs at least three further months of validity beyond your Schengen exit date.[3]
Look at the expiry date before you look at flights. Say you are an Indian accountant in Upanga whose permit runs to 30 January, and you want ten days in Amsterdam over Christmas. Coming back on 2 January leaves only four weeks of permit, short of the Dutch three months. Renew first, or be ready to show the renewal receipt and expect questions.
The other habit we'd break: routing the return through your home country "because it's cheaper". If your life is in Dar, the reservation should bring you back to DAR. A Kenyan engineer who really plans a week in Mombasa on the way home should say so in the cover letter, not leave the officer to guess.
Which flights from Julius Nyerere look right on a reservation?
Most long-haul trips from Dar connect once. Air Tanzania, the national carrier, publishes fares from Dar es Salaam to Mumbai, Harare and Lusaka on its home page, and its site has a "My Booking" lookup that takes a PNR and surname.[13] That Mumbai route is the one many Indian families use for home visits.
For Europe the usual pattern is a Gulf or Turkish connection, or a hop through Nairobi or Addis Ababa. Our notes on Qatar Airways, Emirates, Turkish Airlines, Kenya Airways and Ethiopian explain how each airline's booking lookup works. Before you settle on a routing, check whether your passport needs a transit visa at the connecting airport; that is a real cost that a reservation does not cover.
Example: an Oyster Bay couple heading to Stockholm
Imagine Priya and Arjun, Indian nationals who run a pharmacy business from Oyster Bay. Their son studies in Stockholm and they want two weeks there in late May. Sweden is the only destination, so they apply at VFS Maktaba Square, and the file goes to Nairobi for a decision.[4]
Their slot is on 14 April. Both work permits run into next year, comfortably beyond the trip. We'd suggest one reservation for both names, ordered on 10 or 11 April, showing DAR to Stockholm via a Gulf hub on 20 May and back to DAR on 3 June. The son's invitation, the insurance and the business letter all use the same dates. If Nairobi asks for anything further while the file is open, they answer that request directly.
What they would not do is order the reservation in February, when they first spoke about the trip. By April it would be long gone.
A second example: a Mikocheni teacher visiting Hamburg
Now take Neema, a Tanzanian teacher in Mikocheni, invited by a former colleague in Hamburg for ten days in August. Germany is the destination, so her file goes to TLScontact in Dar.[1] Her checklist asks for an itinerary and says no booking. She prints an airline schedule showing DAR to Hamburg with one connection and the return ten days later, writes the same dates on her form, and adds her school's leave letter and the invitation. Nothing from us is needed, and we would tell her so if she asked.
How do you order a reservation from Dar es Salaam?
- Read the flight line on your checklist first. If it is Germany's "NO flight booking", stop here.
- Fix your VFS or embassy appointment. The reservation date depends on it.
- Put the trip into our booking page; for most people it begins and ends at DAR, on the dates from your form.
- Spell each name as the passport's photo page does, middle names too if the form lists them.
- Pay $9 per traveller by card. One way and return cost the same.
- Expect our email within roughly ten minutes; look in spam if it hasn't landed.
- Find the PNR on the airline's site under Manage booking with your surname. Here is how to check it.
Lost track of an order? Look it up here. Prices in rupees, pounds and Gulf currencies are on the price page, and a hotel reservation covers accommodation proof where your list wants it.
When should a Dar applicant order it?
Close to the appointment. Holds last a fortnight at most, and each airline picks its own cut-off, occasionally an earlier one. For a Dutch file we'd order three or four days before the VFS slot. For Sweden or Denmark, where the passport goes to Nairobi, order it in the same window and accept that it may lapse while the file is being read; if the embassy then wants current flight details, a new reservation at that point is the honest fix.
What trips up Dar applicants?
- Buying a reservation for Germany when the embassy asked for an itinerary only.
- A permit that ends too soon after the return date.
- Forgetting the Nairobi leg of Swedish and Danish processing when planning dates.
- Edited PDFs or "free" generators. A reference the airline cannot find hurts the file.
- Calling the document a ticket. It is a reservation; say so on forms and at interviews.
Dar es Salaam FAQ
Do you have an office in Dar es Salaam?
No. DummyTicketPrice works purely on the web, without a counter in Dar or elsewhere in Tanzania. You complete the form on our website and pay $9 for each traveller by card; we email the PDF, typically within ten minutes or so. Any print shop near Maktaba Square can print it. Support is on WhatsApp and email.
Should I send a flight reservation with a German visa application in Dar?
Germany's mission here wants an itinerary of your planned flights, and its checklist says in capitals that it does not want a booking. A printed schedule showing flights and dates answers that. Nothing needs buying. Follow whatever TLScontact's checklist for your category says on the day you apply.
Where do I apply for a Swedish visa if I live in Dar?
At VFS Global, Maktaba Square Business Park, 4th floor, Wing B, according to Sweden's embassy page. The Swedish Embassy in Nairobi decides the application, so your passport travels to Kenya and back. Allow extra time, and order any reservation only after your appointment date is fixed, not weeks before.
Does the US visa bond apply to me?
If you hold a Tanzanian passport and are found otherwise eligible for a B1/B2 visa, the embassy says you must post a bond of up to $20,000 before issue, through the link the officer provides. Tanzanian nationals also face restrictions under Proclamation 10998 from January 2026. Residents of Dar with other passports should check their own nationality's position.
Is a reservation from Dar enough for a Netherlands visa?
The Netherlands' tourism checklist is happy with a booking held in your name for entering and leaving the Schengen zone; paying for it first is not required. Our held reservation matches that. Approval remains the embassy's call, and extra documents can be requested later.
Can I fly out of DAR on this reservation?
It won't get you on board. The seat sits under a genuine airline reference, yet no fare has been paid, so the desk at Julius Nyerere will turn it away. After the visa arrives, pay for a ticket whose dates sit inside it. Many people choose the same route they reserved, but you don't have to.
How long will a Dar reservation stay live?
A fortnight at most; the carrier fixes the precise expiry for each booking. So order it in the last few days before the VFS or TLS date. If the appointment moves, or the embassy asks for current flight details later, order a fresh one then rather than relying on the old PDF.
Reservation for your Dar es Salaam file
$9 a traveller, ordered online, with a PNR the airline's site will show.
Keep it straight: a reservation is supporting paperwork, not a paid ticket, and it cannot decide a visa. The embassy decides, and the airline decides at check-in.
The home page explains the service in brief. For the rest of the country, read our Tanzania-wide guide covering Arusha, Mwanza, Dodoma and Zanzibar. Nearby city guides: Nairobi and Kampala. Visiting Tanzania instead? See Tanzania visa flight rules. Background reading: Schengen visa flights, Sweden, the Netherlands, onward tickets, each country's rules and why visa reservations exist.
Sources
All sources last checked: October 2026.
- German Embassy Dar es Salaam, Visa section: Schengen visa requirements.
- Netherlands Worldwide, Applying for a Schengen visa in Tanzania.
- Netherlands Worldwide, Checklist: Schengen visa for tourism.
- Sweden Abroad, Apply for a visa (Tanzania).
- VFS Global, Denmark visa information in Tanzania.
- U.S. Embassy in Tanzania, Visas (Proclamation 10998 restrictions, visa bond, expedite rules).
- U.S. Embassy & Consulates in South Africa, Visas: routine visa services update effective 1 August 2026.
- U.S. Department of State, Visitor visa.
- VFS Global media release via APO Group, VFS Global expands UK visa services in Sub-Saharan Africa (November 2024).
- GOV.UK, Guide to supporting documents: visiting the UK.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, Find a visa application centre.
- Tanzania Airports Authority, Airports.
- Air Tanzania, Home page: fares from Dar es Salaam and My Booking.
