Nairobi is East Africa's visa capital. Several European missions here decide files not only for Kenyans but for people living in Somalia, South Sudan, the Seychelles and beyond, and Sweden's embassy covers more than twenty African countries from the city. For you, living in Westlands, Kilimani or Syokimau, that means short commutes to appointments and some very different instructions about flights. The German Embassy does not even list a flight booking for tourists; it wants an itinerary that names your means of transport. The Dutch want a reservation but not a paid ticket. The UK would rather you left flights out. Here is how it fits together, which airlines fly out of Jomo Kenyatta International (NBO), and how to order one from your sofa. DummyTicketPrice works entirely online; nobody from us sits in a Nairobi office.
Nairobi key facts
| Subject | Fact, as checked in October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Main airport | Jomo Kenyatta International (NBO) |
| Netherlands | VFS Global, Nairobi; also residents of Seychelles, Somalia and South Sudan[1] |
| Germany | German Embassy Nairobi via TLScontact; residents of Kenya, Somalia, Seychelles, and non-Rwandans in Rwanda[3] |
| Sweden | VFS Nairobi; the embassy decides for 23 African countries[5] |
| United Kingdom | VFS Global centres in Nairobi and Mombasa since 22 October 2024[6] |
| Price with us | $9 a head whichever direction; cards accepted on Razorpay |
What does each Nairobi mission say about flights?
The four desks most Nairobi residents use give four different answers. Read them closely before you spend anything.
| Destination | Where you apply | Official wording | Our suggestion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | VFS Nairobi[1] | Booking in your name for entry and exit; "You do not need a paid travel ticket."[2] | Held reservation |
| Germany | TLScontact for the German Embassy[3] | "A detailed itinerary outlining the planned itinerary (locations and means of transport)"; no flight booking listed[3] | Itinerary first; reservation optional to back it up |
| Sweden | VFS Nairobi[5] | Refers you to its own checklist for your country of residence[5] | Follow that checklist |
| United Kingdom | VFS Nairobi or Mombasa[6] | "flight bookings (unless transiting)" on the list of documents not to send[7] | Leave it out |
| United States | US Embassy interview | Wait for the visa before buying any fare[9] | Nothing needed |
| Canada | Online, biometrics at a VAC | "flight details" given as one example of travel-plan evidence[10] | Optional reservation |
Why the German Embassy in Nairobi is different
Some German missions, Accra's for one, put a flight reservation on their checklist. Nairobi's tourism page does not. Its list asks for a travel programme, "a detailed itinerary outlining the planned itinerary (locations and means of transport)", and then proof of accommodation, employment, bank statements and insurance.[3] When we went through the list item by item, we found no flight booking anywhere on it.
So do you need us? Not necessarily. Your itinerary can say you fly Nairobi to Frankfurt on 3 June and home on 17 June. A reservation backs that up with a real PNR and real flight numbers, which some applicants like, but the embassy has not asked for it. If money is tight, spend it on insurance first.
The same page adds three details:
- The embassy is responsible only if Germany is your main destination and you live in Kenya, Somalia, the Seychelles or, as a non-Rwandan, in Rwanda.[3]
- Apply no more than six months and, as a rule, no less than 15 days before the trip. Complete files take roughly two weeks; incomplete ones can take up to 45 days.[3]
- On hotels it is blunt: "Cancelled reservations will not be accepted."[3] Keep any hotel booking live until a decision is made.
The Dutch desk at VFS Nairobi
Kenyan residents apply at the VFS Global centre in Nairobi, which also receives applicants living in the Seychelles, Somalia and South Sudan. The window runs from six months out to 15 days before the flight.[1]
This is the desk where a held booking is the requested document. The tourism checklist asks for "a reservation in your name for your travel to and from the Schengen area, or another document showing your travel plans", and confirms payment is not expected.[2] A return NBO–Amsterdam reservation is the natural fit.
Dutch or Swedish appointment coming up?
A return hold from NBO costs $9 a traveller and is emailed within roughly ten minutes.
Sweden: one embassy, 23 countries
Sweden's embassy in Nairobi is a regional hub. It handles short-stay applications from citizens and residents of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Comoros, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.[5] Kenyan residents submit at VFS Nairobi.[5]
The page points applicants to a separate checklist for their country of residence rather than spelling out flights. Download that checklist and follow its travel item exactly. If it asks for a booking, a held reservation is the usual way to meet it; where it insists on a "paid" or "confirmed" ticket, our hold may not be enough, so buy a refundable fare instead.
UK visas: Nairobi or Mombasa, no flight booking needed
From 22 October 2024 UK applicants in Kenya book with VFS Global, which runs centres in Nairobi and Mombasa. Nairobi residents can also pay for an on-demand mobile service that comes to a home or office, and there is an optional Keep My Passport While Applying service.[6]
On flights the guidance is clear. UKVI lists "flight bookings (unless transiting)" with other documents it does not want from visitors.[7] Applications open three months before the trip and are mostly decided inside three weeks.[8] If your trip to the UK is a stopover on the way to Canada or the US, show the onward flight; otherwise leave it out.
Expats in Nairobi: the residence permit question
Many people who lodge visas in Nairobi carry Indian, Pakistani, Filipino, Nigerian, Somali or South Sudanese passports, among others. If you apply from Kenya on a foreign passport, every European desk wants to see that you live here lawfully.
- Germany: foreigners must present "a residence permit for your country of residence".[3] The embassy's 2024 tourism checklist PDF asked for a residence, work or study permit for Kenya valid at least three months after your return.[4]
- Netherlands: proof of legal residence where you apply, with a permit valid at least three months beyond your Schengen departure.[2]
- United Kingdom: "confirmation of legal residence" for anyone applying outside their country of nationality.[7]
If your Kenyan work permit expires two months after you plan to come back, renew it first. No flight document will rescue a weak residence position. For home-country rules, see our pages for Indian, Pakistani, Filipino and Nigerian travellers.
Routes from NBO an officer will recognise
Kenya Airways, which flies from Nairobi, lists flights to London Heathrow and Gatwick, Paris, Amsterdam and New York, along with regional cities such as Entebbe.[11] For a Dutch or French file, a Kenya Airways routing into Amsterdam or Paris reads naturally. For Germany or Sweden, a one-stop routing via Amsterdam, Paris, a Gulf hub, Istanbul or Addis Ababa is ordinary.
If you will start from Mombasa, Kisumu or Eldoret, the reservation can begin there with a domestic connection. Somali or South Sudanese residents who apply in Nairobi but will fly from Mogadishu or Juba should ask for that origin. Show the journey you will actually make.
Example: a Kilimani accountant, Amsterdam and London
Say Wanjiku, an accountant in Kilimani, plans London from 4 to 10 July and Amsterdam from 10 to 18 July. She needs a UK visa and a Dutch Schengen visa. One multi-city reservation covers NBO–London, London–Amsterdam and Amsterdam–NBO.
The UK window opens three months out, so she applies at VFS Nairobi in early April and does not include the reservation, following UKVI's list.[7][8] Her Dutch appointment is on 2 June. She orders the reservation on 30 May, because the hold lasts at most two weeks and the airline decides the exact length. That PDF goes into the Dutch file, where a reservation is exactly what the checklist asks for.[2]
A second example: an Indian engineer in Westlands bound for Munich
Picture Rohit, an Indian national working in Westlands on a Kenyan work permit, invited to a trade fair in Munich. Germany is his main destination, so he books TLScontact for the German Embassy.[3]
His file starts with his permit, which must still have at least three months left after his return.[4] His itinerary lists each day in Munich and states that he flies NBO–Munich via a Gulf hub. Because the embassy does not list a flight booking, the reservation is optional. He adds one anyway so the flight numbers in his itinerary can be checked. Our view: reasonable, but not essential.
Coming to Nairobi from Somalia, South Sudan or the Seychelles
Nairobi's desks serve a much wider area than Kenya. The Dutch centre takes residents of the Seychelles, Somalia and South Sudan.[1] The German Embassy covers Somalia and the Seychelles, plus non-Rwandans living in Rwanda.[3] Sweden's list runs to 23 countries.[5]
If you fly in from Mogadishu, Juba or Mahé for an appointment, two things matter for the flight document. First, the reservation for the visa should show the trip to Europe you will genuinely take, which may start from your home city rather than NBO. Second, your own trip to Nairobi is separate; it does not belong on the Schengen reservation unless you will really begin the European journey from Kenya. The German Embassy also asks Somali citizens for a completed application for exemption from the passport requirement, so check that item early if it applies to you.[3]
What the German appointment costs
For a tourism Schengen visa through the German Embassy, the page lists a visa fee of €90 and a TLScontact service fee of €28.50.[3] These are separate from anything you pay us. Our $9 per passenger is the only charge for the reservation, and the embassy does not require one for this category, so think about whether you need it at all. For the Dutch desk, where a reservation is requested, budget for VFS's own fees as well, which VFS shows at booking.
Ordering from Nairobi
- Confirm which embassy decides, using the main-destination rule.
- Read the travel item on that embassy's current checklist.
- Enter your route and travellers on our booking page, spelling each name as the passport does.
- Pay with a card on Razorpay: $9 per traveller.
- Open the email about 10 minutes later and save the PDF.
- Check the PNR on the airline's site. This guide shows how.
When to order before a Nairobi appointment
Leave it until two or three days ahead. A hold survives for two weeks at most, the exact span being the airline's call, so a reservation made the day you book your VFS slot may be gone when the officer looks. With the German Embassy warning that incomplete files can take up to 45 days, it is worth making the file complete on day one rather than adding papers later.[3]
Nairobi mistakes to avoid
- Applying to the Dutch desk for a trip mostly in Germany.
- Cancelling a hotel booking before a German decision; the embassy will not accept cancelled reservations.
- Adding flight bookings to a UK visitor file.
- Letting your Kenyan permit run close to your return date.
- Buying a non-refundable fare before any visa is granted.
Nairobi FAQ
Do you have a Nairobi office?
No. DummyTicketPrice has no office in Kenya. Everything happens online: you order on our site, pay by card through Razorpay, and the reservation PDF arrives by email, typically in about 10 minutes. Printing at the office or a cyber café near VFS works fine.
Must I give the German Embassy in Nairobi a flight booking?
Its tourism page does not list one. It asks for a detailed itinerary showing places and means of transport, plus accommodation, finances and insurance. A reservation can back up the flight part of your itinerary, but it is optional here. Germany must be your main destination for this embassy to handle your file.
Is a reservation enough for the Dutch visa?
Yes, as far as the wording goes. The Dutch list will take a booking showing your name for both directions of the Schengen trip, or similar proof of plans, with nothing paid. A held reservation fits. The embassy still decides, so keep it consistent with your insurance, hotel and invitation dates.
Can I apply for a UK visa in Mombasa?
Yes. Since 22 October 2024 VFS Global has run UK visa application centres in both Nairobi and Mombasa. Coastal residents can therefore avoid the trip to Nairobi. Either way, UKVI says flight bookings are not useful evidence for a visit, unless you are transiting.
I live in Nairobi on a work permit. Which documents matter most?
Your residence status. The German Embassy asks foreigners for a residence permit for Kenya, and its 2024 checklist wanted at least three months' validity after your return. The Dutch ask for something similar. The reservation itself just uses your passport name and an NBO departure.
How much is a reservation in Kenya?
Each traveller costs $9 for a single or return route. Multi-city plans such as Nairobi, London, Amsterdam and home are charged per pair of legs, and you see the total before paying. Card only, through Razorpay; M-Pesa and cash are not options for us.
Can I check in for my flight with it?
No. It is a held booking under a live airline reference, with no fare paid, so check-in will refuse it. Once the visa arrives, purchase a real fare with any airline you prefer.
Order your Nairobi reservation
$9 per passenger, online only, PNR you can look up yourself.
Please note: embassies decide visas on the whole file. Treat a reservation as a reservation, keep dates consistent everywhere, and follow the checklist you were given.
Back to our home page. Nearby city guides: Kampala, Dar es Salaam, Accra and Kumasi. Related guides: Kenyan travellers, visiting Kenya, Kenya Airways reservations, Sweden visa, Germany visa, Netherlands visa, Schengen rules, UK applications, flight reservations for visa files, the requirements table, onward travel proof and held hotel bookings.
Sources
All sources last checked: October 2026.
- Netherlands Worldwide, Applying for a Schengen visa in Kenya.
- Netherlands Worldwide, Checklist: Schengen visa for tourism.
- German Embassy Nairobi, Schengen visa for tourism.
- German Embassy Nairobi, Checklist for filing your tourism application (2024, PDF).
- Embassy of Sweden, Kenya: apply for a visa.
- VFS Global, UK visa services in Kenya are now available through VFS Global (22 October 2024).
- GOV.UK, Guide to supporting documents: visiting the UK.
- GOV.UK, Standard Visitor visa: apply.
- U.S. Department of State, Visitor visa.
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, Apply for a visitor visa.
- Kenya Airways, Flights.
