Malawi passport
Apply for a Malawi ePassport online, book your appointment, and know what to bring for a new, renewed, lost or child passport. From the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services.
- From K50,000
- Express K120,000
- Forms free
Quick answer: Apply on the Malawi e-Passport portal: fill the online form and upload your photo and documents, book an appointment at a registration centre, then go in with your acknowledgment receipt for fingerprints and a photo. Bring proof of identity such as your National ID and birth certificate. An adult passport lasts 10 years and costs K50,000 (36 pages, normal service); express is K120,000. The forms are free: never pay a middleman.
Pick your situation
The steps are the same for everyone. The documents change.
Apply online on the ePassport portal
This is how the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services asks most people to apply now. Its website’s ‘Apply for passport’ page points straight to the portal.
Fill out the online form
Open the Malawi e-Passport portal and start a new application. Enter your personal details and upload a passport-size photo and your documents (see the lists below). The portal may ask you to prove you are human first. Use www.epassport.gov.mw: the address without www shows a security warning.
Book your appointment
Choose a registration centre near you and a time slot. Download and save the acknowledgment receipt: you need it at the centre.
Visit the registration centre
Bring the receipt and the original documents. Immigration captures your photo, fingerprints and signature and checks your documents, and you pay. The portal says you receive the e-passport ‘within days’ after verification.
Track your application
Log in to the portal and open My Application to see where it is. Do not book flights before your passport is in your hand: Immigration has warned about this for years.
Apply on paper (offline form)
No internet, or applying at an embassy? The portal has an offline form for each office.
On the portal, under ‘Prefer to apply using the offline method?’, pick your location and download the PDF form. Fill it in and hand it in at that centre. In Malawi the list has Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu, Mangochi and Karonga.
Immigration’s form rules: use a black ballpoint pen, write in CAPITAL LETTERS, stay inside the white boxes, and keep names to 21 letters. Small mistakes: black them out with the pen. No Tipp-Ex, and no corrections at all in Part B. Older forms also need Part B signed by a magistrate or commissioner for oaths and Part C confirmed at your District Commissioner’s office: ask the centre whether yours does.
- Pen
- Black ballpoint
- Writing
- CAPITAL LETTERS
- Names
- Up to 21 letters
- Corrections
- None in Part B
First passport: what to bring
From Immigration’s types of passport page. Immigration may ask for any other document to check what you wrote.
New adult passport (valid 10 years)
- Two filled passport forms (online: the form and your acknowledgment receipt).
- Two passport-size photographs.
- Proof of identity: for example your birth certificate, an academic certificate, your voter’s registration certificate or an official letter from your employer. Bring your National ID too: NRB says it is needed to identify you when you apply for a passport.
Senior government officials (Grade H and above) can get a service passport with a letter from their ministry. A temporary passport lasts six months and uses the same steps as an ordinary one.
Renew, or replace a lost passport
Expired, full, lost or damaged: all go through the same portal or offices.
Renewal (expired or full)
One filled passport form, two passport-size photos and your previous passport.
Lost passport
Report the loss to the police first. Then bring one filled passport form, one passport-size photo, the police report and Immigration’s Report of Lost form (ask for it at the office).
Damaged passport
Immigration groups damaged passports with lost and expired ones. Bring the damaged passport and ask the office which documents it needs.
Be honest on the form. A false declaration can cost K25,000 or 12 months in prison, and forging a passport up to 5 years (Immigration penalties).
Passport for a child under 10
Children below 10 need their own passport. It is valid for 5 years.
Bring
- Two filled passport forms and two passport-size photographs.
- A consent form from a parent or legal guardian.
- A copy of a parent’s passport and/or the child’s birth certificate.
- For a child born outside Malawi: a copy of that country’s birth certificate.
How much is a Malawi passport?
From the fee card the Department of Immigration posted on its Facebook page (January 2026). The forms themselves are free.
Ordinary passport, 36 pages: normal K50,000, express K120,000, replacing a lost or damaged one K70,000, international truck drivers (normal) K50,000.
Ordinary passport, 48 pages: normal K130,000, express K180,000, lost or damaged K180,000, express for lost or damaged K200,000.
Child (minor), 36 pages: normal K40,000, express K80,000, lost or damaged K100,000. Temporary, 12 pages: K70,000. Service and diplomatic passports cost more (K120,000 to K250,000).
Pay at the office or through the official portal and keep your receipt. Fees change: if in doubt, call Blantyre 01 832 565, Lilongwe 01 759 270 or Mzuzu 01 311 474.
- Adult, normal
- K50,000
- Adult, express
- K120,000
- Lost or damaged
- K70,000
- Child, normal
- K40,000
- 48 pages, normal
- K130,000
- Temporary
- K70,000
Do not pay middlemen. Immigration says passport forms are free to download from the ePassport portal and warns against ‘dobadobas’ who charge extra or pose as officers; it arrested 22 of them in October 2025.
Immigration offices and missions abroad
Headquarters is in Blantyre, with regional offices in Lilongwe, Mzuzu and Zomba and sub-offices around the country.
Offline forms are listed for Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu, Mangochi and Karonga. Full addresses: physical addresses.
Abroad: the portal also lists offline forms for Malawi’s missions in Addis Ababa, Beijing, Berlin, Brasilia, Brussels, Cairo, Dar es Salaam, Dubai, Harare, Johannesburg, London, Lusaka, Maputo, Nairobi, New Delhi, New York, Pretoria, Tokyo and Washington. Contact the mission first: Malawi foreign missions.
- Headquarters
- New Government building, Victoria Avenue, Blantyre, 01 832 565
- Lilongwe
- Murray Road, 01 759 270
- Mzuzu
- Choma building, opposite Mapanga Furniture, 01 311 474
- Zomba (East)
- Behind the Eastern Region Police offices, M1 road
Immigration passport pages
Malawi passport FAQ
How do I apply for a Malawi passport online?
Go to www.epassport.gov.mw, fill the form, upload a photo and documents, book an appointment, then visit the centre with your acknowledgment receipt for biometrics.
How long is a Malawi passport valid?
An ordinary adult passport is valid for 10 years, a child passport (under 10) for 5 years, a temporary passport for 6 months.
How much does a Malawi passport cost?
K50,000 for a normal 36-page adult passport, K120,000 express, K70,000 to replace a lost or damaged one, K40,000 for a child (Immigration’s fee card, January 2026). The forms are free.
How long does it take to get a passport?
The ePassport portal says you receive it within days after your biometrics are verified. Do not book travel until you have it.
What do I need to replace a lost passport?
A police report, Immigration’s Report of Lost form, one filled passport form and one passport-size photo.
Can I apply for a Malawi passport from abroad?
Yes. The portal lists offline forms for 20 Malawi missions, including London, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Dubai and Washington.
Do I need a National ID to get a passport?
NRB says the National ID is needed to identify you when you apply. Bring it with your other proof of identity.
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GuideOpen a bank accountBring your National IDSources: passport pages (apply, types of passport, how to fill the form, passport process, penalties), contact and physical address pages on immigration.gov.mw; the Malawi e-Passport pre-registration portal (www.epassport.gov.mw); the passport fee card and notices on the department’s Facebook page (January 2026); NRB FAQ on the National ID. Checked October 2026.
