The struggle to acquire new e-passports in Kenya worsened ahead of the August 31st 2019 deadline as multitudes of Kenyans were observed last Friday June 21st in long queues at Nyayo House, Nairobi.
By 3:30am, a number of Kenyan nationals had started arriving to struggle for the most adored travel document amidst thousands of applicants.
An estimated number of 700 people had arrived earlier by 3:30am before even the gates could be opened, by 6am, authorities opened the gates though service delivery commenced by 8am, the official working hours for all government offices in Kenya.
The Kenyan Department for Immigration recently opened four new immigration centres and six more in the Diaspora so as to ease congestion at Immigration headquarters. Besides one in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, other centres comprise Embu, Kisii, Eldoret and one in Nakuru.
According to the Immigrations Director – General Alex Muteshi, these centres are expected to serve close to 1,500 people daily.
Other centres outside the Country are in Johannesburg (South Africa), Berlin, London, Paris in Europe, Washington D.C (USA) and Dubai.
In the year 2017, the Kenyan government started the process of phasing out all old passports as holders were tasked to apply for new digital passports as the old passports will become obsolete effective September 1st 2019. Kenyan nationals are currently left with upto 70 days to have obtained the new Digital passport.
FEATURES
Here are some quick features of the new Kenyan e-passport:
- How to get it:Applicants must personally present themselves to immigration offices for the taking of biometrics (fingerprints, photo, and signature).
- Fees: It costs KSh4,550 for a 32-page and KSh6,050-page passport document. The processing period for an e-passport is 10 working days.
- Distinct features: The e-passport has a chip which provides travellers benefits such as use of automated border clearance.
- How it works: The e-passport will enhance faster clearance at points of entry and exit. It is highly secure, hence avoids passport reproduction and tampering.
- Passport number: The new e-passport will not bear the same passport number as current passport. It will have a new number.
- Living abroad: You can renew or get a new e-passport through any Kenyan embassy.
- Logo: The e-passport logo, which appears on the cover, is the international symbol for an electronic passport. It means that the passport has an integrated circuit or chip on which data about the passport and its holder is stored.
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