How To Get A Somaliland🟩⬜️🟥Visa In Djibouti City, Djibouti🇩🇯

“It’s the eye of the tiger, it’s the thrill of the fight” – Survivor.

After my first Christmas in Northern Ireland since 2019, I headed out of Belfast on Boxing Day/Saint Stephen’s Day south to Swords/Baile Atha Cliath. Known to the world as Dublin. I had a Dublin to Djibouti hat-trick of flights booked.

A hat-trick of flights later (via the Bul and Addis Ababa), I landed in the Republic Of Djibouti. I already had an evisa for Djibouti online and a flight out booked from Hargeisa in Somaliland. Therefore I now needed a visa for Somaliland. This should be an easy piece of cake, right??? Wrong, this was the start of a Horn Of Africa nightmare. Good luck nabbing this – it was NOT easy and is the most expensive and excruciating journey of my life. I will never ever do it again. I am just glad it is all over.

Where Is The Somaliland Embassy/Mission/Consulate In Djibouti?

By fluke the Somaliland Embassy was actually a calm 20 minute dander from my hostel, Djibguesthouse in the north of Djibouti City. The Somaliland Embassy is NOT on Google, nor on Google Maps, but the red pin below to the right is where it is located.

It is located directly opposite the USA Embassy, which is on Google Maps. The exact details are:

On December 28th 2025, I sauntered slowly over to the Somaliland Embassy. As shy as I was in a Northern Irish 1988. Meantimmic, 230+ countries were casually swallowed but this was a tough one. I had already Googled and AI-ed it as well as asking 2 travel friends so I thought I was ready for it. Everyone said it was cheap and easy. How wrong they were…

What do I need?

So as I went in, I thought all I needed was –
– proof of a hotel booking in Somaliland.
– a Northern Irish passport (of which I am coerced into 2 – a Northern Irish British passport and a Northern Irish Irish passport)
– a filled in form.
– a photy of my bake. (A passport photo).
– payment of $65 US Dollars (10,620 Djibouti Francs).

Should be easy? Wrong. On the eve of me backpacking Somaliland, the “country” of Israel decided to recognise Somaliland as a real country!! Oops!! Who do they think they are? Me? Yep Israel now recognise Somaliland which is an entirely Islamic State with alcohol and pork strictly banned. Horrific timing.

Here is my story and how I nailed a Somaliland Visa in December 2025 in Djibouti.

Day 1
I walked to the Somaliland Embassy to check where it was. It was a Sunday so I stupidly assumed it was closed. It turns out it would have been open had I arrived an hour earlier. I got here at 1.30 p.m. But at least I knew where it was and the exact opening times and days. Besides, this was a 10 day trip, which I pencilled in as 5 or 6 days in Djibouti and 5 or 4 days in Somaliland. I chilled the night away in a bar watching African Nations Cup. The next morning, I would be the Embassy’s first customer.

Day 2
I was the Somaliland Embassy’s first customer at 8.00 a.m. The five things I thought I needed simply were not enough. This was very strict. First of all – payment in US Dollars was not allowed. Strange, as online reports wrote that. I needed to have the money in Djibouti Francs – 10,620. That could easily be solved by changing money or going to an ATM.

But the biggest issue was that I needed a Letter of Invitation and a Tour Reservation. I tried to sweet-talk the staff into skipping that, as I had not read about that need online or from other travellers. But there was no leeway. A guided tour and armed security was now essential. The rules had changed in the last week. Just my bad luck. By 9.00 a.m. I had left the Embassy and headed to the nearest place to have Wi-Fi which was the Sheraton Hotel.

I solved the first issue about the money by getting money from the ATM and getting it changed. Now I needed a Letter of Invitation for Somaliland. I got online at the Sheraton Hotel and sat by the pool with a beer wondering how on earth to get a Letter Of Invitation and tour without paying for it. I had no time to waste. I went straight onto Google, Facebook, Instagram and I copied and pasted the same short email to EVERY tour company I could find in Somaliland.

TWO of them replied with half an hour, but the news was far from good. The first one wanted a minimum of $1,150 US Dollars for a 4 day tour and the issuance of LOI. The second one I had to bargain with. In the end, the second contact finally issued the LOI if I could confirm to book only one tour – to Las Geel. By this time, it was just before 13.00 so I ran back to the Somaliland Embassy and it was luckily still open. After showing my LOI and Tour booking on a PDF on my phone, they said that I could get the visa the next day, but asked why I didn’t have the LOI, Tour Booking and Hotel reservation PRINTED!!??

I am a backpacker, I don’t even own a printer! I now had to find a printer, or pay the hotel and ask them to do it. The hotel did it of course but the Embassy was closed now so I’d go back again the next day. The lady at the Somaliland Embassy asked me to send the details on What’s App as it would help process it quicker. I didn’t have internet and no chance were they giving me their Wi-Fi password. They also don’t use Bluetooth or Email. So I went back to the hotel to use their Wi-Fi and sent the Embassy my hotel, LOI and tour via What’s App!

Day 3

Now that I finally had everything, I headed there to the Somaliland Embassy first thing in the morning again…

This is what you need:
– PRINTED proof of a hotel booking in Somaliland.
– a Northern Irish passport (of which I am coerced into 2 – a Northern Irish British passport and a Northern Irish Irish passport)
– a filled in form.
– a photy of my bake. (A passport photo).
– payment in 10,620 Djibouti Francs (NO other currency accepted, and no change given, must be EXACT money).
– PRINTED proof of a guided tour booked in Somaliland (this includes extortionate fees for a personal bodyguard).
– PRINTED proof of a Letter of Invitation.

And with a nervy delay…I finally had that Somaliland visa!! I went to the cool nearby cafe called Camel Coffee Shop to have a coffee, feel the relief and celebrate.

While this felt good, my drama was far from over, and in fact that original tour price of $1,150 US doesn’t feel that bad now, given the corruption, rip offs and expenses I would face when I finally land bordered into Somaliland. That is another crazy story which would bankrupt me for the second time in 6 months. Scandalous and a brace of countries I will never return to.

Which Company For Letter Of Invitation?

If you wonder why I didn’t share the contacts of the two companies in Somaliland that replied to me, it is because they are both rip-offs. I won’t recommend them at all and will never ever share their Letter Of Invitation. They basically ruined my trip adding ridiculous extra expenses and rules and making sure at the land border I would have to pay $180 US just to get into Somaliland. They also knew I would be blogging about it and therefore they expected I might recommend them!! Not a fucking chance rip-offs.

Good luck all of you. This was not an easy or cheap visa nor an easy or cheap trip. Take thousands of dollars – they will turn to dust in minutes in Somaliland.

Here are a few videos explaining my Somaliland Visa Struggle: