British Indian Ocean Territory
Visa British Indian Ocean Territory
Afrique · Afrique de l’Est
The British Indian Ocean Territory is administered from London by the BIOT Administration. The pages read on 2026-09-18 state that there is no visa requirement but that access is restricted and presupposes prior authorization. They describe the mooring permit for the outer islands, reserved for the safe passage of a yacht: file sent by email, insurance and passport copies, 250 pounds sterling per week, 28 days at most, six weeks of processing. Since 31 March 2026, consideration of new applications has been suspended.
The information on this page helps prepare a case. Only the competent authority decides; always check the official source before filing an application.
Machine-assisted draft, reviewed by a person on 23 September 2026. Only the authority cited is authoritative.
Published on 23 September 2026 · Reviewed by vg_admin on 23 September 2026 · Sources consulted on 18 September 2026
At a glance
- Authority
- British Indian Ocean Territory Administration (BIOTA) — British overseas territory administered from London
- Submission channel
- Mooring permit file sent by email to BIOTA.Environment@fcdo.gov.uk, according to the "How to apply for a mooring permit" page
- Electronic visa
- Not applicable: the "Visa requirements" page states that there is no visa requirement for the territory, but that any visit presupposes prior authorization
- Status of applications
- Since 31 March 2026, substantive consideration of new entry permit applications has been suspended, save in exceptional circumstances, because of ongoing litigation
- Duration of a mooring permit
- 28 days at most, in blocks of one, two, three or four weeks, with no extension possible
- Portal language
- English
Do you need a visa?
Choose a nationality to see the recorded entry rule. No answer is shown until reviewed data exists.
Documented visa types
- Permit to enter the Territory
- Prior authorization required of anyone traveling to the territory. Since 31 March 2026, substantive consideration of new applications has been suspended, save in exceptional circumstances. Official page (new tab)
- Outer Islands mooring permit
- Issued to yachts only where mooring is essential to a safe passage across the Indian Ocean. Chartered vessels, cruise ships and vessels with a paying crew are excluded. Official page (new tab)
- Access to Diego Garcia
- Reserved for people with a connection to the military facility or to the administration of the territory, according to the "Visiting" page. No commercial flight serves the territory. Official page (new tab)
Where and how to apply
The British Indian Ocean Territory is a British overseas territory administered from London, made up of an archipelago of 58 islands covering about 640,000 km² of ocean between East Africa and Indonesia, according to the home page of the official site.
The "Visa requirements" page states that there is no visa requirement for the territory, but that anyone traveling there must have obtained prior authorization. The "Visiting" page states that access is restricted, that the territory is not a tourist destination and that no commercial flight serves it.
The application for a mooring permit for the outer islands is addressed by email to BIOTA.Environment@fcdo.gov.uk, with the "BIOT Outer Islands Permit Request" form, the proofs of insurance and a copy of the valid passports of everyone on board. The size of the message is limited to 10 MB.
Since 31 March 2026, the administration has suspended substantive consideration of new entry permit applications, save in exceptional circumstances, because of litigation concerning its competence to issue those permits. The rule applicable to a given nationality is shown with the nationality selector on this page; only the administration of the territory is authoritative.
Steps in the procedure
- Check that the visit falls within the cases accepted: safe passage of a yacht through the outer islands, or a connection with the military facility at Diego Garcia or with the administration of the territory.
- Read the document "BIOT Guidance For Yachts" and the note on invasive species, as the first step published by the authority asks.
- Complete the "BIOT Outer Islands Permit Request" form.
- Gather the proofs of insurance and a copy of the valid passports of everyone on board.
- Send the whole by email to BIOTA.Environment@fcdo.gov.uk, staying under the limit of 10 MB per message.
- Await the decision: the authority asks that at least six weeks of processing be allowed.
- After approval, follow the payment instructions given and pay the permit fees.
- Receive the permit and the additional documents, including the fishing log to be filled in during the stay.
Documents mentioned by the authority
- "BIOT Outer Islands Permit Request" form duly completed.
- Copy of a valid passport for each person on board.
- Passport valid for at least six months from the date of entry into the territory.
- Insurance certificate covering medical evacuation, for at least 100,000 United States dollars per person.
- Insurance certificate covering wreck salvage, clean-up and removal.
- Relevant passages of the insurance policy highlighted in the document sent.
- Documents drawn up in English; a translation is required where they are not.
- Proof of payment of the fees, after the instructions sent by the authority following approval.
- Fishing log to be filled in, including where the catch is nil.
- Other documents: not stated on the portal consulted.
The exact list depends on the type of permit and on the situation; only the official page is authoritative. The documents above are those published for the outer islands mooring permit.
Stated fees and processing times
According to the portal consulted on 2026-09-18: the mooring permit costs 250 pounds sterling per week, a fixed price since 1 July 2024. A permit covers one, two, three or four weeks, within the limit of 28 days.
According to the portal consulted on 2026-09-18: for an international bank transfer, the authority asks that 7 pounds sterling be added or that the receiving bank's charges not reduce the amount received. Payment takes place after approval, on the authority's instructions.
According to the portal consulted on 2026-09-18: at least six weeks of processing must be allowed. The permit cannot be extended after issue and is not refunded if it is not used.
According to the portal consulted on 2026-09-18: no amount is published for an entry permit that is not a mooring permit. Not stated on the portal consulted.
After the decision
The mooring permit is valid for 28 days at most and cannot be extended. It gives entitlement only to mooring in the outer islands, excluding Diego Garcia.
The pages read require a fishing log to be kept, including for a nil catch, and limit fishing to handline fishing for subsistence, within the limit of three days' consumption and without freezing.
Diving, spearfishing, the collection of flora and fauna and any commercial activity are prohibited, according to the page devoted to mooring permits.
The "Current travel advice" page reports a risk of piracy off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden and recommends that yachts avoid high-risk areas. It refers to the travel advice of the British Foreign Office and to the maritime information center against piracy.
Published procedures
No reviewed and published procedure for British Indian Ocean Territory to date. We prefer an empty page to an invented requirement.
Explore proceduresFrequently asked questions
Is a visa required for the British Indian Ocean Territory?
The "Visa requirements" page read on 2026-09-18 states that there is no visa requirement for the territory, but that anyone traveling there must have obtained prior authorization. The rule reviewed by VisaGuideline is shown with the nationality selector on this page. Always check with the authority.
Where is the application filed?
For a mooring permit in the outer islands, the file is sent by email to BIOTA.Environment@fcdo.gov.uk, with the application form, the proofs of insurance and the passport copies of each person on board. The size limit of the message is 10 MB.
Can one travel there as a tourist?
The pages read state that the territory is not a tourist destination, that no commercial flight serves it and that permits for yachts are issued only where mooring is essential to a safe passage across the Indian Ocean. Chartered vessels, cruise ships and vessels with a paying crew are excluded.
How much does a mooring permit cost?
According to the portal consulted on 2026-09-18: 250 pounds sterling per week, a fixed price since 1 July 2024, for a duration of one to four weeks and 28 days at most. For an international transfer, the authority asks that 7 pounds sterling be added or that the receiving bank's charges be covered.
How much time should be allowed?
The authority asks that at least six weeks of processing be allowed for a mooring permit application. Payment takes place only after approval, on instructions given by the administration.
Are applications being processed normally?
No: the pages read on 2026-09-18 state that, since 31 March 2026, the administration has suspended substantive consideration of new entry permit applications, save in exceptional circumstances, because of litigation concerning its competence to issue those permits.
Official sources
Consulted sources
Official pages read to write this guide, with the date they were read. A page may have changed since: check it before taking any step.
- Visiting | British Indian Ocean Territory (new tab) read on 18 September 2026
- Visa requirements | British Indian Ocean Territory (new tab) read on 18 September 2026
- How to apply for a mooring permit | British Indian Ocean Territory (new tab) read on 18 September 2026
- Current travel advice | British Indian Ocean Territory (new tab) read on 18 September 2026
- British Indian Ocean Territory (new tab) read on 18 September 2026
What this guide does not know yet
Points the official source does not specify and which this guide therefore left blank. Ask the competent authority about them before filing an application.
- The suspension of consideration of new permit applications, in force since 31 March 2026, is tied to ongoing litigation: a reviewer must check whether it still applies at the date of publication.
- The pages read state that resettlement applications made by people of Chagossian origin are suspended pending the outcome of an appeal: that point falls under a regime distinct from visit permits and is not described here.
- No amount is published for an entry permit other than the mooring permit; the procedure applicable to people on official duty or connected with the Diego Garcia facility is not described.
- The text "The Visitors and Visiting Vessels Ordinance 2018", to which the mooring permits page refers, was not read.
- The "BIOT Outer Islands Permit Request" form and the "BIOT Guidance For Yachts" guide were not read: their exact content is not reproduced here.
- Avenues of appeal against a permit refusal are stated on no page read.
- The register of official sources designates https://www.biot.gov.io/visiting/ as the portal: that address was indeed read on 2026-09-18.
Prepare my case
This method is the same for every destination. It does not list any document as an official requirement: only the authority’s source is authoritative.
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Describe your situation
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Check at the source
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Track what is left to do
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The information on this page helps prepare a case. Only the competent authority decides; always check the official source before filing an application.