Do Senegalese passport holders need a visa for Ecuador?

By Vinayak Gupta · Travel Writer, Tripmojo · Updated September 4, 2026 · Reviewed by Simran Raheja

Yes. Senegal appears on Ecuador’s Régimen Especial list of 45 nationalities that must obtain a visa before departure, so a Senegalese passport is one of the few that Ecuador does not admit on arrival. The visa to apply for is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, submitted online through the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform, and the requirement to start early is a criminal-record extract that has to be translated and authenticated before the file is complete.

Quick facts

Visa required

Visa required: Yes, before travel
Why: Senegal is one of 45 countries on Ecuador’s Régimen Especial list
Visa to apply for: Temporary visitor tourist visa, 90 days
Where: Online, on the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform
The hard requirement: Casier judiciaire, translated and apostilled
Passport validity: At least six months

Entry requirements

A Senegalese passport valid for at least six months.
An original criminal-record extract (extrait de casier judiciaire), and an equivalent from anywhere else you have lived in the last five years, translated into Spanish and apostilled. Ecuador counts it as valid for 180 days from the date of issue to your last entry, and asks for it only from applicants over 18.
Proof of lawful means of support under Ministerial Agreement No. 70 of 28 June 2024, with a travel itinerary and return tickets.
A colour photograph to specification: JPG, no more than one megabyte, 5 by 5 centimetres, white background, neutral expression or a natural smile, both eyes open.

On the list, but with the easier authentication route

Ecuador’s foreign ministry publishes the list of nationalities that need a visa before arriving, and its services portal repeats the same 45 names as the Régimen Especial. Senegal is on both, so the visa is a requirement and not a formality that can be sorted out at the airport in Quito.

The visa to apply for is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days. The portal frames it as an authorisation for tourism and states that holders may not work. The application is made only online through the ministry’s e-VISAS platform, and the visa is issued through an Ecuadorian mission abroad, so the process begins on the internet and ends at a consulate.

The document that governs your timeline is the criminal-record extract. For a Senegalese applicant that is the extrait de casier judiciaire, obtained from the courts, then translated into Spanish and authenticated. Unlike most of the other nationalities on the list, Senegal can authenticate it with a single apostille, which is the faster route.

Good to know

Senegal joined the Apostille Convention, which spares Senegalese applicants the longest step other nationalities on the list still face. The Convention entered into force for Senegal on 23 March 2023, so the casier judiciaire can be authenticated with one apostille from the designated Senegalese authority rather than dragged through a full consular-legalisation chain. Ecuador accepts either, and for a Senegalese document the apostille is both accepted and quicker, so ask for the apostille specifically.
The extract is counted valid to your arrival, not to your application, and that is the detail that wastes one. Ecuador treats it as valid for 180 days from the date of issue until your last entry, so a document obtained early and paired with a trip later in the year can expire against the journey even though the apostille is quick. Work the dates backwards from when you intend to land.
Only applicants over 18 are asked for the criminal-record extract, which helps a family application. Ecuador limits the requirement to adults; a child’s file still needs the six-month passport and the photograph to specification, but not the record extract or its apostille.
This is a tourism visa in the strict sense, and the portal says as much, describing the permission as being for tourism and prohibiting holders from carrying out work activities. A trip that includes anything that could be read as work, including short unpaid but organised engagements, is a separate application, and the line is written into the visa description itself.

Frequently asked questions

Do Senegalese citizens need a visa for Ecuador?

Yes. Ecuador publishes a list of 45 nationalities that must obtain a visa before arriving, its Régimen Especial, and Senegal is on it. Most other nationalities are admitted without one.

Which visa should Senegalese travellers apply for?

The temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, applied for online through the foreign ministry’s e-VISAS platform.

Do Senegalese applicants need a criminal-record extract?

Yes, if you are over 18. Ecuador asks for an original extrait de casier judiciaire, translated into Spanish and apostilled, plus an equivalent from anywhere you have lived in the last five years.

Can a Senegalese casier judiciaire be apostilled?

Yes. Senegal has been a member of the Apostille Convention since 23 March 2023, so the extract can carry a single apostille rather than going through consular legalisation.

Can Senegalese travellers work in Ecuador on this visa?

No. The government portal describes the permission as being for tourism and states that holders are prohibited from carrying out work activities.

How long can Senegalese citizens stay in Ecuador on this visa?

Up to 90 days. The visa is the temporary visitor tourist visa for 90 days, and it does not permit work.

Other passports for Ecuador

Sources

Every fact on this page was checked against the official sources below on 4 September 2026.

Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Movilidad Humana del Ecuador, "Lista de países que deben presentar visa al ingresar al Ecuador": 45 nationalities are named as requiring a visa to enter Ecuador, and Senegal is among them. Read 2026-09-04. https://www.cancilleria.gob.ec/2020/06/30/lista-de-paises-que-deben-presentar-visa-al-ingresar-al-ecuador/
Gobierno del Ecuador, gob.ec, "Concesión de visa de visitante temporal turista 90 días", MREMH: the 45 Régimen Especial countries include Senegal; the visa authorises tourism and prohibits work; the application is made only online through the e-VISAS platform and the visa is issued through Ecuadorian missions abroad; requirements include a passport valid at least six months, a colour photograph to specification, an original criminal-record certificate from the country of origin or residence over the last five years translated and apostilled or legalised and valid 180 days from issue to last entry and required only of those over 18, proof of lawful means of support under Acuerdo Ministerial No. 70 of 28 June 2024, and a travel itinerary with return tickets. Read 2026-09-04. https://www.gob.ec/mremh/tramites/concesion-visa-visitante-temporal-turista-90-dias
HCCH, Apostille Section: the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents entered into force for Senegal on 23 March 2023, so Senegalese public documents can be authenticated by apostille. Read 2026-09-04. https://www.hcch.net/en/news-archive/details/?varevent=909
République du Sénégal: the extrait de casier judiciaire is the national criminal-record extract issued by the courts. Read 2026-09-04.

Entry rules change without notice and the official source is always the authority. Confirm with the embassy or immigration portal before you book.

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