How to fill in Cuba's D'Viajeros form

What you need before you start

• Your passport.
• Your travel details. The form asks for general, immigration, customs and health (sanitary) information.
• An email address. Your completed form arrives by email as a PDF with a QR code.
• A phone, tablet or computer. You can fill in D'Viajeros from any device.
• If you have a Cuban e-visa: the ten-character code you received when it was approved.
• Separately from D'Viajeros, tourists need a tourist visa, also called a tourist card, before travel. The UK FCDO also says you need proof of onward or return travel.

Step by step

1. 1Open the official site, dviajeros.mitrans.gob.cu, run by Cuba's Ministry of Transport. The form is available in Spanish, English, French, Russian, Italian and German.
2. 2Fill in the four parts of the form: General Information for the Traveler, Immigration Information, Customs Information and Sanitary Information. Your information must be truthful.
3. 3If you have an e-visa, enter its ten-character code in D'Viajeros. D'Viajeros then generates your QR code, which contains your visa and form data.
4. 4Submit the form. You receive a PDF with a QR code by email.
5. 5Download or print the PDF before you travel. Wifi may not be available when you arrive in Cuba.
6. 6At check-in, your airline checks that you have completed the form.
7. 7On arrival, show the QR code to the authorities in Cuba, on your phone or printed.

When to submit

Official sources differ on the submission window. Cuba's Foreign Ministry says to complete D'Viajeros no more than 48 hours before check-in for your flight. The UK FCDO says within 72 hours before you enter the country. Submitting within 48 hours of check-in fits both. Check the official site, dviajeros.mitrans.gob.cu, before you travel.

If you have an e-visa: the Cuban Embassy in Prague, in its e-visa notice, says to activate your e-visa code on D'Viajeros no later than 3 days before departure. Some pages give a 7-day window, but neither the Cuban Foreign Ministry nor the UK FCDO says so.

Whatever the window, complete D'Viajeros before you check in for your flight. Airlines check it at check-in.

Cost

D'Viajeros is free. The Embassy of Japan in Cuba says the official Cuban government site does not ask for payment information.

The tourist visa (tourist card or e-visa) is a separate document and is not free. You can apply through a Cuban embassy, a travel agent or tour operator, or online for an e-visa at evisacuba.cu. The e-visa is linked to your passport. Fees vary by consulate: for example, the Cuban Embassy in Prague charges 750.00 CZK for a tourist visa, processed in 3 business days and sent as an alphanumeric code by email.

Families and children

• Official Cuban sources say all travellers entering Cuba must present D'Viajeros. We found no official rule on group submissions.
• For the tourist card, which is separate from D'Viajeros, the Cuban Embassy in the UK says minors need their own tourist card, even if they are registered in a parent's passport.

Fake websites: how to spot them

The Embassy of Japan in Cuba warns that fake D'Viajeros sites exist. After you enter your information, they show a payment form. The official Cuban government site does not ask for payment.

• Check that the address is dviajeros.mitrans.gob.cu. It belongs to Cuba's Ministry of Transport (MITRANS) and ends in .gob.cu, the Cuban government domain.
• D'Viajeros is free. Do not enter payment details on any site that claims to be D'Viajeros.
• The official e-visa site, evisacuba.cu, is a separate site and does charge for the visa. Do not confuse it with D'Viajeros.

Common mistakes

• Using a fake site that asks for payment.
• Not completing D'Viajeros before check-in. Airlines check it.
• Not saving or printing the PDF with the QR code. Wifi may not be available on arrival.
• Giving information that is not truthful.
• Forgetting to enter the e-visa code in D'Viajeros if you have an e-visa.
• Treating D'Viajeros as a visa. It is an information form. Tourists also need a tourist card or e-visa.