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Money & duty free for Burundi

Currency information: 

Burundi Franc (BIF) = 100 centimes. Notes are in denominations of BIF5,000, 1,000, 500, 100, 50, 20 and 10. Coins are in denominations of BIF10, 5 and 1.

Credit cards: 

Major credit cards are not generally accepted; there is limited use in some major hotels.

ATM: 

There are no ATMs in Burundi.

Travellers cheques: 

To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take traveller's cheques in US Dollars or Euros. Commission rates are usually high.

Banking hours: 

Mon-Fri, mornings only.

Currency restriction: 

The import and export of local currency is limited to BIF2000. The import and export of foreign currency is unlimted, subject to declaration.

Currency exchange: 

All exchange transactions must be conducted through one of the main banks in Bujumbura or Gitega.

Burundi duty free

The following goods may be imported into Burundi without incurring customs duty:

• 1000 cigarettes or 1kg of tobacco.
• 1L of alcoholic beverages.
• A reasonable amount of perfume.

Note: A deposit may be required for items such as cameras, recorders and laptop computers. Currency and cameras should be declared upon arrival.

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