Senegal
Get information, make an appointment and submit your application
Submit your application at a visa centre for France, in Senegal
Visa applications on ordinary passports submitted in Senegal are processed by the Consulate General of France in Dakar, which is the only authority authorized to make decisions regarding visa.
Under the authority of the Consulate General of France in Dakar, VFS Global Dakar is responsible for receiving visa applications, carrying out biometric data collection, providing information to applicants and issuing their passports following decisions by the Consulate General of France.
- Processing times for short-stay visa applications vary according to the time of year. On average, please allow 15 days for processing.
- For long-stay visa applications, processing times vary according to the reason for stay and the time of year. Visa applications requiring verification of civil status may take several months to process. Allow 1 month between submission of the application and the planned date of departure.
Whom should I contact ?
Besides particular situations, visa applicants can visit VFS Global Centre in Dakar to have their visa application processed. Visa applicants can visit the visa centre after making an appointment :
- On VFS Global website appointment system,
- In case of difficulty in using this tool, please contact the Call Centre on (+221) 33 860 60 06.
Waiting times vary depending on the number of applicants and of the time of the year. Applicants are therefore asked to arrange their appointment at least:
- 15 days prior to departure for a short-stay visa,
- 1 month for a long-stay visa.
Visa applications can be submitted up to 6 months before the date of your planned stay in France and the Schengen area.
VFS Global is not authorized to intervene in processing times.
You can apply for a visa at the consulate only if you are :
What are the visa fees ?
The fees required for filing a visa application are composed of :
- Fees charged by the French administration (pdf) to process your visa application. The applicable fees are indicated in Francs CFA (FCFA). This fee collected by the administration is non-refundable, even if your visa application is rejected. This fee has to be paid while submitting your application.
- Service fees collected by VFS when you submit your application to the external service provider. The basic service fees are paid in the local currency and costs around 15.000 FCFA per submitted application; this fee will not be reimbursed unless the applicant decides not to submit their application before the biometric data is collected. This fee has to be paid while booking an appointment on the VFS web system.
Optional paid-for services are also available for visa applications. When arriving to the VFS center, the reception desk can propose you to submit your application at the Premium desk. This service remains optional.
Book an appointment
VFS Global Centre in Dakar
ATRYUM Center,
Km 8, Route de Ouakam,
Dakar
Senegal
senegalinfo.frsn@vfshelpline.com
(+221) 33 860 60 06
(Appointment only)
| Monday | 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. |
| Thursday | 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. |
| Friday | 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
(Withou appointment)
| Monday | 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. |
| Wednesday | 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. |
| Thursday | 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. |
| Friday | 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. |
| Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
Practical information
Closed onSaturdays and Sundays.
Public holidays in 2025:
- Wednesday, January 1st: New Year's Day
- Monday, March 31st: Eid al-Fitr - Korité *
- Friday, April 4th: National Day
- Monday, April 21st: Easter Monday
- Thursday, May 1st: Labor Day
- Thursday, May 29th: Ascension Day
- Friday, June 6th: Eid al-Kebir - Tabaski *
- Monday, June 9th: Pentecost
- Saturday, July 5th: Tamkharit *
- Tuesday, August 12th: Magal de Touba *
- Friday, August 15th: Assumption
- Friday, September 5th: Maouloud *
- Saturday, November 1st: All Saints' Day
- Thursday, December 25th: Christmas
* Subject to confirmation by local authorities.
Preparing for your visit to the Centre
When you are making an appointment i.e. via the call centre or on the VFS Senegal website, you will be asked to immediately provide an email address where you can receive the appointment confirmation letter. You will be asked to show this letter when you visit the VFS Global Centre in Dakar. You must print the letter out before visiting the Centre along with your other visa application documents.
Attendance in person: Visa applicants must submit their visa application in person at a VFS Centre after making an appointment.
On the day of your appointment, remember to bring the following
- The appointment conformation letter (printed out);
- Your passport with at least 2 blank pages. The passport number must be identical to the one mentioned on the appointment confirmation letter;
- The file containing all the required documents presented in the same order as on the list of required documents;
- Payment to cover the cost of the visa and the processing fees.
If your visa application is incomplete (i.e. missing documents), you may choose not to submit your application until you have all the required documents and come back to the Centre at a later date after making a new appointment. You will not have to pay any processing fees if you decide not to submit your application at this time.
However, if you do decide to submit your incomplete application, you will be asked to sign a document indicating that your application is incomplete and that certain documents are missing.
Submitting a complete application does not guarantee that the consular authorities will issue you with a visa.
Biometrics
All visas issued by France are biometric visas. In the biometrics booth, your photograph and fingerprints will be taken.
Visa applications for children under the age of 12 (i.e. completed form, photograph, individual passport, visa fees and supporting documents for each child) must be submitted at the Visa Centre by the child’s parents or legal guardians.
Children under 12 years of age are not required to provide the biometric data; however, they will be required to be present in order to have their biometric photograph taken. The ISO/IEC format photograph (pdf) of the child will be scanned.
Only visa applicants are permitted to enter the Visa Application Centre. No visitors or companions are permitted to enter unless prior authorisation has been obtained from the consular authorities.
You can follow the progress of your request from your France-Visas account, under "My requests".
Only visa applicants can collect their visas. Agents and those granted power of attorney will not be allowed to collect your passport.
If you want the envelope containing your passport (and any other documents) to be returned to you by the consular authorities by post, please indicate that you want to use the courier service when you submit your application.
Gambia residents
The French Consulate in Dakar, Senegal processes all visas applications for people residing in Gambia wishing to visit France as their sole or main destination.
To complete your online application you must select Senegal as your country of submission of application. You must then file your application in the VFS Global Centre in Dakar, which processes visa applications on behalf of the French consular authorities in Dakar.
Gambia residents who wish to apply need to take an appointment on the VFS website, and will be required to pay a service fee at the VFS application centre.
Guinea Bissau Residents
The French Embassy in Guinea Bissau doesn't issue visas.
- People residing in Guinea Bissau wishing to make a short stay in France must contact the Spanish Embassy in Bissau to check the procedure to follow:
- Address: Praça dos Herois Nacionais s/n – Bissau
- Telephone number: (+245) 96 687 51 52
- Send an email
- The French Consulate in Dakar, Senegal processes visas applications for people residing in Guinea Bissau wishing to apply for a short-stay visa for France’s non-European territories, or a long stay visa for France. To complete your online application you must select Senegal as your country of submission of application. You must then file your application in the VFS Global Centre in Dakar, which processes visa applications on behalf of the French Consulate in Dakar.
Guinea Bissau residents who wish to apply have no need to take an appointment.. They can go directly to VFS without appointment every working day from 8.30 am to 3.30 pm.
Cap Verde residents
The French Embassy in Cape Verde doesn't issue visas.
People residing in Cape Verde wishing to make a short stay in France must contact the Joint Visa Application Centre in Praia to check the procedure to follow:
- Website : http://www.eurovisaccv.eu/
- Address: 39, Avenida da OUA (Achada de Santo Antonio) - Praia (Opposite the United Nations building).
- Send an email
People residing in Cape Verde wishing to apply for a short-stay visa for France's non-European territories, or a long-stay visa for France should submit their application to the VFS Global Centre in Praia, which processes visa applications on behalf of the French Consulate in Dakar.
Cape Verde residents who wish to apply qui veulent déposer une demande de visa have no need to take an appointment. They can go directly to VFS without appointment every working day from 8.30 am to 3.30 pm.
Holders of Senegalese diplomatic passport or official passports
Only Senegalese diplomatic passport holders are exempt from having a short-stay visa for France.
Visa applicants holding a service passport or a diplomatic passport (for accepted nationalities) may visit the visa section of the French Consulate in Dakar without an appointment from Monday to Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
Visas issued to holders of official passports (i.e. related to their functions) are free of charge.
Travelling to Finland, Estonia, Iceland or Slovenia
In Senegal, France issues visas on behalf of four Schengen member states i.e. Finland, Estonia, Iceland and Slovenia.
People residing in Senegal wishing to apply for a visa to visit Finland, Estonia, Iceland or Slovenia as their sole or main destination, must select Senegal as your country of submission of application to complete online application.
They must then file the application in the the VFS Global Centre in Dakar, which processes visa applications on behalf of the French Consulate in Dakar.
Representations of Finland, Estonia, Iceland and Slovenia by the French Consulate in Dakar do not concern residents of Gambia, Guinea Bissau and Cape Verde, but only residents of Senegal.
Visas issued by France for other destinations (Monaco, Djibouti, Central African Republic)
The French Consulate in Dakar also issues visas on behalf of Monaco, Djibouti, the Central African Republic and Schengen States..
If you have any problems with your visa application, please contactVFS Global for assistance.
Telephone Dakar : (+221) 33 860 60 06 (from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.). Dial 326 to speak to an agent directly.
Send an email to VFS Global.
You can also send an email to the French Consulate Dakar.