Madagascar - Clearance
COVID-19: Entry protocols for yachts have been affected by the pandemic. See the Biosecurity section for details.
Officials in Madagascar, apart from being slow and not always reliable, are normally not a problem. However, you may well be asked to make an unofficial payment – see the fees section on dealing with payment requests.
PRE-ARRIVAL
It is now possible to obtain a visa online. See Immigration for more details.
ARRIVAL FORMALITIES
On approach, fly the ‘Q’ flag. Do not bother to call via VHF as the officials usually do not have working radios.
Before commencing clearance you may need to find a photocopy shop (to get copies of ship’s papers and your previous port exit zarpe) and an ATM for cash.
General process:
Officials do not come to the yacht and it is necessary to visit the relevant offices:
- Police/Immigration (in many ports the Police will act as Immigration): Here you get your passports stamped and the officer will want one copy of your ship’s registration papers. The officer may hold your passports for a short while and return them with the entry visa attached.
- Customs: The officer will ask for two copies of your exit papers from your last port. One copy will be stamped and handed back to you and the other copy is retained by Customs. There will be a fee for this service, ask for a receipt for the payment. This stamped zarpe is the only paperwork you will receive from Customs to say you have entered the country legally. In some ports, Customs may want you to fill out a crew list/boat information form.
- Note: In some ports, the Police may take the exit zarpe from your last port.
- Port Captain/Coastguard (Marine Malagasy): The officer will look at your passport and ship’s paper and complete a Formularaire De Visite form which you have to sign. You will need to give the date of entry in and exit from Malagasy territorial waters planned point of departure and itinerary. Pay the officer for his services and get a receipt upon request. No paperwork was given.
- Health: In some ports, an inspection is required.
Speaking French may be an advantage. However, some officials do know a little English.
CLEARING OUT
Domestic Clearance:
It is necessary to both clear in and out at each port visited.
On leaving a port; ensure that you have an outward Clearance document and also a “Permis de Circulation.”
International Clearance:
First, go to the Port Captain’s office to complete a Maritime Clearance Form/Bon De Partance ou Passeport. After you make payment the form is stamped and you are issued a payment receipt.
Next visit the Police/Immigration office to get your passports stamped for exiting the country. You will need to provide a crew list to be stamped (2 copies). Immigration retains one copy and you must return to the Port Captain’s office with the other stamped crew list.
No agent is required.
Last updated: January 2019
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Madagascar’s maritime borders still remain closed to yachts, however, with a newly appointed Minis-ter of Transport yachts may now make an application to enter in advance. Bryce of Catamaran “Lady Blue” reports; “Just wanted to let you know that we are currently in Sainte Marie, Madagascar. We arrived on the 10th of April and we plan to cruise towards Nosy Be while making a few stops underway (i.e. Diego Suarez). A few weeks before leaving Mauritius (last port of call) I wrote to APMF in order to request permission to enter into the territory of Madagascar. After 2 weeks of waiting time and me chasing, the local authority replied positively to my request and so we received the authorization letter. We are the only foreign yacht cruising in the area as of now.” Find out more at Madagascar Biosecurity. https://noonsite.wccstaging.com/place/madagascar/view/bio-security/#
I planned a visit to Port Dauphin in November 2022. There were rumours that despite Madagascar being recently open to flights and cruise ship visitors, that it was closed to private boating from abroad. We contacted the embassy in London to be told that they ‘are not aware of any restriction for visiting boats’.
We cancelled are visit however, after harbour staff in Le Port, La Reunion, said that we definitely could not go there (except in an emergency) and he said that he had spoken to several boats that had been refused access in the last month or so.
I just spoke to someone who had cause to seek shelter there for weather and was carefully monitored to prevent shore access and given a military escort away from the country when the weather improved.
The 30-day visa into Madagascar is no longer free. As far as we can tell we were treated fairly in all of our dealings with the officials when we cleared into Ambodifotatra.
First, we went to the police station who act as Immigration. The 30-day visa cost 115,000 Ariary each person. We paid this to the officer plus 40,000 for a taxi. He took the passports, and one copy of our two copies of the exit zarpe (clearance) from Réunion. We went back at the time he suggested the next day and he returned the passports with the visas attached. I don’t know where the copy of the Réunion exit paper went… he said it is no longer required.
We still DID have to go to Îsle Madame (the fishing harbour) to see the Customs office. This is well within walking distance for this old geezer. It is in the first building you come across, like an abandoned hotel. The office is in the west wing, access from the north, outside. There we filled in a crew list/boat info sheet of paper and paid 60,000. We asked him if it was really necessary to visit the Coast Guard office just 20 metres away to the west and while considering it finally said we should.
There at the Coast Guard, we paid another 60,000 and filled out another vessel and crew info sheet.
That is what is required to check in when asking for a 30-day visa. I’ll come back to post again when we check out domestically on Monday to tell you what we did.
The Madagascar relay station for the Peri-Peri net has now closed. Although no longer resident in Madagascar, Ex-Net Controllers Des and Nell Cason of SY Gambit are happy to offer advice to cruisers visiting the country. They have sailed this area extensively and welcome the opportunity to stay involved in the well being of fellow sailors. Contact them by E-mail at sygambit(at)Gmail(dot)com
Just a word of caution, we are in Deigo Suarez, Madagascar in the commercial port anchorage and had an intruder on our boat around 0200. He was trying to steal our portable generator. He had a knife and was able to cut the lines securing it before he was scared off the boat. He had a friend waiting for him in a small dugout outrigger. He also stole lines off the boat. So please be very careful here.