Immigration | Customs and Immigration

February 24th, 2024 by Suomalainen

Gambia to Senegal with a car, senegalese side. Purchasing the passavant; they held me in one office for one hour, saying it's not possible to have a passavant for a car older than 8 years. I guess someone is trying to copy the Diama scam. He didn't ask for money, just kept repeating it's a problem and nothing to do - even though he was holding my last expired passavant made in the very same border - but in the end wrote me the normal passavant for 10 days (+2 x 15days extension possibility) for normal 5000cfa.
After, when leaving with the car, one officer wanted to see the passavant and tried to say i need one more stamp "but he can help me with that". I said i will go myself, no need for help, and he waved me free to go. (I hear some people pay 2000 for that extra stamp.)

January 25th, 2024 by Toby2101

Crossing from Senegal to Gambia:
All people are friendly and helpful, all together max. 1h.

Gambia side still don't know, how to fill out the GDP. But we explained and they filled it out after our advises.

For German (and other countries) no Visa requiered, so you get registrated at the border normally, but after that, you have to drive about 2km to the next town, to get the stamps in your passport.
The people at the border, stopped a car for US from Gambia and toll them to drive us there. Perfect!!!

After 1 Day in Gambia => All police & military Controller are friendly and happy if you Talk to them and tell something about you. NO corruption, no delays are questions about the car.

January 7th, 2024 by cheekymonkeys_overafrica

Crossing Gambia rom South to North.
See our comment at the entry point.
Hold your yard: DO NOT PAY THE CFA5,000. They are not legit at all.

November 30th, 2023 by iNomads OnTour

Senegal CDP properly stamped out. Gambia also stamped CDP. 45 minutes in total. Once briefly asked for a gift for the office. Out without a problem, without a gift. We didn't pay any money.

The trouble starts after the border. In and out of the city Farafenni south of the border there are controls waving their hands telling you to come and if you drive at the stop sign they want to pay penalty because you didn't wait for the green sign. So wait at the stop sign until a green sign is clearly held up. We didn't pay but had a lengthy discussion. Are very aggressive, rude and clearly out for money.

October 22nd, 2023 by fulloffeet.wordpress.com

Public transit crossing just fine. Neither side tried for a bribe although Gambian side 1000x more friendly than Senegalese side. Once on Senegalese side a bus straight to Dakar can be found for 4,500 CFA although they initially asked 7,000 (some local ladies told me the real price and chastised the guy for me).

June 4th, 2023 by The Mogli Family

We had to pay 10.000 CFA pp to enter, and got only 21 days. Prepare well with regulations to be able to discuss about settings and prices

May 31st, 2023 by totointhewild

Senegal side refused to stamp our CDP out even after asking to be stamped out a couple of times. They handed me a paper to show to Senegalese customs upon reentry. Very nice and kind people. They even speak some English. Anyways, Gambian side obviously didn’t now what to do with CDP and filled in the exit side for Senegal. CDP is now messed up but I asked Gambian side again to take another page to do a proper entry. Guy apologized for his mistake. Very quick border altogether. Took 45 minutes including the hassle with the CDP.

April 12th, 2023 by margaux.dandoy

From Senegal to Gambia. Just crossing.
Visa: negotiate to have a visa for a month instead of the "transit visa" they tried to charge you with. Then they tried to ask us 10.000 m CFA for the stamp in (2 persons). We asked for a receipt and they gave us 28 days.

Passavant: the guy asked us 5.000 CFA for the passavant. After a long discussion, we gave up and gave him the money. He told us that he had to pay much more to enter Europe...

Except that, really fast and friendly people.

November 15th, 2022 by Pachific_around_Africa

Thanks to Lemontree's comment from 21.08.2022 we crossed the boarder within 2 houres. That worked perfectely!

We had only some discussions on the Gambian border. They didn't wanted to stamp our passport without 10'000 CAF each ( 2 people; for Swiss Visa is for free). At the end we payed 10'000 CAF for both, which is still too much. We didn't got a recepie for that inofficial visastamp.

August 21st, 2022 by Lemontree

We were crossing the border from Senegal to Gambia with 2 vehicles. Our impression was that it was very busy, but easy - no corruption attempts.
1. When you approach the border there is a police station on the left side, where the passports are scanned and you get the exit stamp.
2. Then you proceed to the green building, which says "Visa&Passavant". There we got a customs document for our vehicles, even though we have a CPD. We asked to not stamp out our CPD, and it was no problem at all.
3. With the paper from customs, we needed to go back to the police to get it stamped as well.
4. Proceed to the Gambian side of the border. On the left side are customs and immigration offices.
5. At customs we presented all our documents and got our entry stamp for the vehicle in the CPD - they did not ask to search the car.
6. At immigration they just asked, how long we intend to stay and what our route will be - according to this we got an entry stamp with validity for 30 days.
7. After the border there is another police checkpoint on the right. For some reason they want to put a stamp on the Senegalese customs document as well and asked for 1000 CFA. After we got the stamp and some discussion with asking for a receipt, the officer told us our CPD is more important and we were able to leave without paying.

May 22nd, 2022 by untouracinq.com

actually the fastest and easiest border since our departure for africa 3 years ago. from gambia to senegal. 20mn both sides included and we are a family of 5. no money asked, neither at immigration nor customs (we have a cpd).

December 31st, 2019 by david_kuilboer

Corrupt border again.
They want you to pay 1000CFA for just a stamp on the car transit document.
Also 1000CFA for the exit stamp.
Took quite some arguing before we could get all our documents stamped without paying...

November 18th, 2019 by charlotte_rochenard

The Senegal side is good, not been ask for money. On The Gambia side, they try and make you say that you are just transiting (not staying overnight in the country) and ask for 5000cfa with no receipt. The visa is however free (french passport) so just say that you intend to stay a few days in the country to visit even though that is not the case. I stayed one night.
Make sure they issue a proper passavant or you might get in trouble on the other side, they stamped my Senegalese passavant, although it wasn’t my fault, the officer on the other side didn’t like it and wanted me to pay 10 000cfa, I didn’t pay.

April 15th, 2019 by dplusf

very fast and friendly. the Senegal's police officer ask for some help to buy some tea. we told him, that we can't help him and it was ok. everybody was very friendly.

March 24th, 2019 by overland.org

Quick and easy border. Senegal asked for fingerprints at exit then passport stamp, registration of vehicle info, then let us go.

Gambia was also quick but extremely corrupt. They tried in every way to get money. They Invented stamps that were not necessary just to get payed. I got out without paying since we are from a UN mission but if I was not it would have taken hours of discussions.

February 18th, 2019 by tomenansschaap

We crossed from Gambia to Senegal.
Gambia very easy. Helped the officer to stamp the exit part of CdP.
Senegal side also easy. No hassle, no bribe, not asking for anything, no fixers, no money changers!
All 45 minutes and we where off.
We had the feeling that they "cleaned" the place with other officers. Everybody on both sides where very friendly and helpfull to get you through the paperwork.
Now we hope there will be a change at the other borders also. Starting in Rosso!!!

February 3rd, 2019 by Chris Ratay

Traveling south - Senegal stamped out passport but not vehicle paper. GAMBIA: 5000cfa for vehicle. 3000 dah (€50) for visa for 90 days. Very easy. British passports don't require a visa, and get 28 days. There is a list of countries posted on wall that require visa, and it's long. Bridge fee is 3000cfa

February 1st, 2019 by carol.ussier

To leave Senegal we had to pay 500cfa for a transit certificate + 1000cfa at the douane.

On the gambian side, customs asked for 5000cfa + 1000cfa to stamp the same transit certificate.

May 22nd, 2018 by studio

Only after paying 5000.- cfa they released my passport. As they said I had a transit visa and was not supposed to stay one night in the country. At immigration I told them I intended to stay one night..... very corrupt. Be careful