APPLYING FOR A PASSPORT

This section provides British nationals living in or travelling to Senegal, Mali, Guinea Bissau or Cape Verde with basic information on how to obtain a passport abroad, and what to do if they lose their passports.

You can submit your application for a British passport to our Consular Section at the Embassy. The Consular Section is open Monday-Friday 0800-1200.It will then be transmitted to our High Commission in  Banjul, The Gambia for processing. If you choose for us to send it via our internal mail system, it can take up to 8 weeks for the passport to be returned to you. Alternatively you can pay an additional fee of 40,000CFA for it to be sent by courier. This will take up to 2 weeks.

In urgent cases, we are able to issue temporary or emergency passports at our Embassy in Dakar, if you meet certain criteria. Please contact us for more information on this service.

Q: What should I do if I lose my passport or get it stolen?

A: You should go the nearest police station and declare it stolen. They will then give you a 'Déclaration de perte' which you should bring to the Embasy when you apply for your new passport.

Q:   What if I later find a passport I have reported as lost or stolen?

A:   You must return it to the nearest British Consulate as soon as possible. If you are in the UK you should return your passport to the nearest Identity and Passport Service Office.

Once you report your passport as lost or stolen the passport is electronically cancelled and you are not able to use it as legal proof of identity, nationality or for any other legal purpose. You must not use it to travel, as this may cause the passport to be impounded by the Immigration Service at UK ports or airports, and if attempting to travel overseas, you could face deportation or arrest. You must also not use it as a means of identification, as this may be detected as a potentially fraudulent act