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VisasMauritius Visa Requirements for Visitors and Movers
Passport holders from the UK, South Africa, the EU, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand need no visa for Mauritius, according to the Passport and Immigration Office (PIO), but the immigration officer at the port of entry decides how long each visit may last. No number of days is published for these nationalities: UK government advice says up to 60 days for British citizens, and the official ceilings are six months a year (PIO) and 180 days in a calendar year (Economic Development Board, EDB). Visitors cannot work, and staying longer means an extension from the PIO or a residence route such as the Premium Visa.
Mauritius visa requirements for visitors and movers turn on four questions: whether your passport needs a visa before you fly, how long the officer will let you stay, which forms you must complete, and what to do if you want longer. We take them in that order, then cover working as a visitor and the digital travel authorisation enacted in August 2026, and finish with a table of the routes to a longer stay. The sources are the PIO, the EDB, the Acts and UK government travel advice, read on 28 October 2026.
Which passports need a Mauritius visa
The PIO publishes a country list that puts each of 197 countries into one of four groups. The list is undated and its file name says 2025, so check your own passport against the PIO’s current pages before you book.
| PIO group | Countries | Examples from the list |
|---|---|---|
| No visa required | 113 | UK, South Africa, Ireland, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United States, France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, India, Kenya, Zimbabwe, China, Brazil, Singapore |
| Visa for sixty days on arrival | 63 | Philippines, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Cameroon |
| Visa for two weeks on arrival | 6 | Nigeria, Madagascar, Algeria |
| Visa required prior to travel | 15 | Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Somalia |
Separately, the PIO’s visa page says holders of passports issued by European Union countries are exempt. Holders of passports that Mauritius does not recognise (its travel requirements page names Taiwan Province of China, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and the UK British Indian Ocean Territory), stateless persons, refugees and travel-document holders need an entry visa before travel. The exception is Taiwan passport holders, who may be granted a visa for sixty days on arrival.
A visa, where one is needed, only allows you to travel to a port of entry. It does not give a right of admission: the PIO says the final decision rests with the immigration officer after examination at the point of entry. Visas and extensions of stay are issued free of charge.
How long you can stay, and who decides
There is no automatic number of days. Under section 20 of the Immigration Act 2022 the immigration officer admits a visitor and issues a visa stating the conditions and the period of admission, and with the Minister’s approval can vary the conditions or extend or limit the stay. The PIO puts it plainly: the officer decides how long a person can stay on each visit. We read the Act as first enacted in 2022, and it has been amended since.
The official pages give two ceilings, and neither is a grant. The PIO says a maximum of six months may be granted in a calendar year, case by case. The EDB says a tourist’s cumulative stay may not exceed 180 days in a calendar year, and that anyone staying longer needs a Premium Visa. British citizens get a more specific line from the UK government: they can visit without a visa for up to 60 days, and a border official stamps the end date of the permitted stay in the passport. The date in that stamp is the one that counts.
Other visa types carry stated limits, and they are where several of the numbers people quote come from:
| Visa | Limit | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Business visa | 120 days in a calendar year, and no more than 90 days a trip | Establishing or conducting a business or investment, not paid in Mauritius |
| Multiple-entry visa | The same 120 days a year and 90 days a trip | Foreign business people who need a visa before travel |
| Social visa | 45 days | Visitors sponsored by socio-cultural organisations. Religious travel needs one before departure |
| Transit visa | Onward travel within 24 hours | Passengers travelling to a third country |
| Medical visa | Up to six months | Treatment at registered private institutions. Granted on arrival |
So 90 days is a per-trip limit for business visitors, and no official page gives it as a tourist stay.
What the officer checks on arrival
The PIO’s travel requirements say every entrant must have:
- a passport valid beyond the period of the intended stay;
- a valid return ticket;
- the right to re-enter the country of origin or residence;
- adequate funds for the stay, with no amount published;
- a confirmed hotel booking or sponsorship for accommodation;
- no plan to take part in gainful activity without a valid residence permit.
UK government advice for British citizens adds that the passport should be valid for the whole stay and have one blank page, and that you must be able to show proof of onward or return travel. Anyone travelling to live or work needs a valid entry residence permit. A person who arrives without a visa that is required may be sent back at the carrier’s cost, and staying after a visa or entry permit expires is an offence that can lead to prosecution.
Read the stamp: the end date in your passport is the limit of your stay, and it can be shorter than you planned. If it is, ask the PIO about an extension before that date arrives, not after.
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Forms to complete before you fly
The PIO’s menu links to the Mauritius All-in-One Travel Digital Form at safemauritius.govmu.org. UK government advice tells British citizens to fill it in online before they arrive and to print the version with the QR code; without it, you complete an immigration disembarkation card at the airport. The site loads as an app that we could not read, so we cannot list what the form asks for.
A health declaration is also required by law. Under the Quarantine (Health Declaration Form) Regulations 2026, published as Government Notice 107 of 2026, anyone who enters Mauritius by ship or aircraft must fill in a health declaration form at the point of embarkation. The regulations took effect on 9 June 2026 and have no end date. Refusing to complete the form, or knowingly giving false information, is an offence with a fine of up to Rs 500,000 and imprisonment of up to five years. We could not confirm whether the declaration is part of the All-in-One form or a separate one, so ask your airline when you book.
Because of Ebola, a Passport and Immigration Office advisory of 11 June 2026 refused entry to foreigners who had been in the countries it listed during the previous 21 days. Citizens, and holders of permits, business visas or student visas, could still enter after 21 days in quarantine. We could not confirm which countries are on the list today, so read the current advisory and ask your airline before you book.
On arrival you may be asked about your health and recent travel. UK government advice adds that officials may ask for a blood sample from travellers coming from a country where malaria is common.
Health-related entry restrictions can also be introduced at short notice. Before you travel, check the PIO’s site and your own government’s travel advice for anything that applies to the countries you have recently been in.
The digital travel authorisation
Act 13 of 2026, which received assent on 12 August 2026, adds a digital travel authorisation to the Immigration Act. Once the section is in operation, tourists and other visitors, business travellers, people in transit and the other groups listed in section 20(1) must hold one before they are admitted. They apply for it electronically before travelling and pay a prescribed fee, and the Minister may exempt any person or class of persons.
That is what the law says. What we could not find is when it starts: the Act brings the section into operation on a date to be fixed by Proclamation, and we found no Proclamation. The fee and the exemptions are not published either, so we cannot tell you when you will need the authorisation or what it will cost.
The June 2026 Budget, as summarised by the EDB, separately announced an e-visa system that would let non-citizens apply before they travel. It does not use the term digital travel authorisation and gives no date, so we cannot confirm that the two are the same measure. Check the PIO’s site shortly before you travel.
Extending your stay
Extensions are handled by the PIO, and its page says applicants should call personally, at its offices in Sterling House, Port Louis. They are free. In law they are at the officer’s discretion, with the Minister’s approval (section 20(3) of the Immigration Act 2022), and the PIO publishes no processing time.
The PIO lists these documents:
- the extension form, signed;
- a photocopy of the bio page of your passport and of the page with your arrival stamp;
- a copy of your ticket reservation, with the confirmed ticket once approval is given;
- a bank statement for the last three months;
- a confirmed accommodation booking or a letter from a local sponsor, giving their name and address, phone number, profession and relationship to you, with a copy of their ID or passport, a utility bill, a lease where one applies and their bank statements.
Business visitors add a letter from the sponsor or company. For a minor, the PIO asks for a parental consent letter, the birth certificate and copies of the parents’ passports, and it may ask for other documents. Its email address is piomain@govmu.org.
Anyone who intends to stay longer than 180 days in a calendar year needs a Premium Visa, the EDB says, so for a long stay look at that route first. Our Premium Visa guide covers it.
Working as a visitor
Visitors may not work. The PIO says a person who entered on a tourist or business visa is not entitled to take up employment, and its entry conditions rule out gainful activity without a valid residence permit. The government’s work permit FAQ adds that applications from tourist visa holders are not considered. A business visa lets you establish or conduct a business or investment, but not be paid in Mauritius.
Whether remote work for an employer abroad is acceptable on a tourist stay is not addressed on any official page we read. The route the EDB describes for it is the Premium Visa.
Ways to stay longer in Mauritius
A visitor stay is for visiting. Anyone planning to live on the island needs a permit, and the EDB offers the four routes below. A permanent residence permit is a later step. It is open after five years on an Occupation Permit or the retired non-citizen permit, with a separate money test, and the property route has no path to it. Our permanent residence permit guide covers who qualifies.
| Route | Length | What it asks for | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premium Visa | More than six months, up to one year, renewable | Income or a business outside Mauritius. Three months of bank statements and proof of monthly income, insurance, accommodation and a return ticket. No published income minimum, and no fee | Mauritius Premium Visa: Rules and How to Apply |
| Occupation Permit | Up to 10 years | Investor: initial investment of USD 100,000. Self-Employed: USD 50,000, services sector only. Professional: basic salary of at least Rs 50,000 a month. USD 50 non-refundable application fee | Mauritius Occupation Permit: Categories, Salary and Fees |
| Retired non-citizen permit | 10 years, renewable for another 10 | Aged 50 or over, with income evidence set by the EDB. No gainful employment | Retiring in Mauritius: The Residence Permit Rules |
| Property route | While you own the property; the Invest Hotel guidelines do not say | A purchase of at least USD 375,000, either under an EDB scheme or of an apartment in a building of at least two floors above ground | Buying Property in Mauritius as a Foreigner |
Our Mauritius visa checker compares your answers with these routes and shows which ones fit.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a visa for Mauritius?
It depends on your passport. The Passport and Immigration Office lists 113 of 197 countries as needing no visa, including the UK, South Africa, Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and EU passport holders are exempt. Other passports get a visa on arrival, for sixty days or two weeks, or must apply before travel. In every case the immigration officer decides whether to admit you and for how long.
How long can I stay in Mauritius as a visitor?
The immigration officer sets the period at the airport. The Passport and Immigration Office publishes no number of days for visa-free nationalities. UK government advice says up to 60 days for British citizens, with the end date stamped in the passport, and the official ceilings are six months a year according to the Passport and Immigration Office and 180 days in a calendar year according to the Economic Development Board.
Can I work remotely on a tourist stay in Mauritius?
Visitors may not take employment or engage in gainful activity without a residence permit. No official page we read says whether remote work for an employer abroad is allowed on a tourist stay. The route the Economic Development Board describes for remote work is the Premium Visa, which covers more than six months and up to one year.
How do I extend my stay in Mauritius?
Apply in person at the Passport and Immigration Office in Port Louis. Extensions are free and are decided case by case. Take the signed extension form, your passport, a ticket reservation, three months of bank statements and either an accommodation booking or a letter from a local sponsor. The office does not publish a processing time.
Sources, checked 28 October 2026
Every source is an official page: the Passport and Immigration Office, the Economic Development Board, the Acts of the National Assembly and the government’s work permit portal, plus the UK government’s travel advice for British citizens.
- Visa Requirements (Passport and Immigration Office): who needs a visa, the officer’s final say on admission and length of stay, the business, social, transit and medical visas, free visas and extensions, and the offence of overstaying
- Visa requirement by country (Passport and Immigration Office): the 197-country list in four groups (the file is undated)
- Travel Requirements (Passport and Immigration Office): the entry conditions, unrecognised passports, and the bar on gainful activity without a residence permit
- Extension of Visa (Passport and Immigration Office): the in-person application, the documents asked for, and that extensions are free
- Residence Permit for Employment (Passport and Immigration Office): that tourist and business visa holders cannot take up employment
- Quarantine (Health Declaration Form) Regulations 2026 (Government of Mauritius, via the Passport and Immigration Office): the health declaration form, its start on 9 June 2026 and the penalty
- Ebola Virus Disease travel advisory (Passport and Immigration Office): the entry restrictions of 11 June 2026 and the 21-day quarantine
- Act 13 of 2026 (National Assembly of Mauritius): the digital travel authorisation in section 25(d), and its start by Proclamation under section 61(3)
- Budget Highlights 2026/2027 (Economic Development Board): the e-visa announcement under tourism, with no date
- Immigration Act 2022 (Economic Development Board, residency.mu): section 20 on admission, the period of stay and extensions, in its 2022 text
- Mauritius Premium Visa (Economic Development Board): the 180-day line in a calendar year, tourist stays and the Premium Visa
- Mauritius travel advice: entry requirements (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, GOV.UK): up to 60 days without a visa for British citizens, the stamped end date, passport validity, the All in One form and health questions on arrival
- Work permit FAQ (Government of Mauritius work permit portal): that work permit applications from tourist visa holders are not considered
- Occupation Permit guidelines (Economic Development Board): the Occupation Permit thresholds and fee, and the USD 375,000 property route to a residence permit
- Retired non-citizen residence permit (Economic Development Board): the minimum age of 50 and the length of the permit
General information only, not immigration, tax, legal or financial advice. Mauritius often changes these rules in its June Budget, so check the official pages above and speak to a qualified professional before you act.