Tourist Requirements

Citizens of the United States, western Europe, Canada, Argentina, and Chile are not required to have a visa and are issued a tourist visa on arrival in Honduras. Authorities are currently granting 90-day visas, and any extensions (30 more days are available) must be taken care of at the immigration office in Tegucigalpa. Citizens of all other countries are required to obtain visas before entering Honduras. Cost usually depends on what that country charges Hondurans for visas. Sometimes it’s free, and sometimes it can cost up to US$20.

Tourists are granted a 90-day visa upon entry. One 30-day renewal is allowed, for a US$20 fee. Renewals can no longer be processed at the immigration offices across the country but must be submitted in Tegucigalpa. You should be able to get the form at least at the migración office in most large cities. The immigration office (www.migracion.gob.hn) in Tegucigalpa is on the anillo pereférico, opposite the UTH (Universidad Tecnico de Honduras). Sometimes you may be asked to get a certain amount of timbre stamps, available at a local bank, as payment, and you will need to leave your passport for 1–3 days.

The fine for overstaying a visa is calculated at immigration upon exiting the country; airport officials are accustomed to doing this, and no one else seems to be able to say in advance how much it will be. One report is that there is a US$32 fine for the first month and 20 percent of the minimum salary (US$290) for each additional month. Others have been charged more.

Foreigners are required to carry their passports with them at all times, but rarely if ever will it be checked. Be sure to keep photocopies in your hotel room or, better still, just carry the photocopies.

© Chris Humphrey and Amy E. Robertson from Moon Honduras, 5th Edition