Guidance

Gambia: Knowledge Base profile

Published 11 August 2025

Version 2.0

About: Gambia

This document contains useful information about Gambia which will assist His Majesty’s Passport Office staff process passport applications.

Contacts

If you have any questions about the document and your line manager or senior caseworker cannot help you or you think that the document has factual errors then email the Guidance team.

If you notice any formatting errors in this document (broken links, spelling mistakes and so on) or have any comments about the layout or navigability of the document then you can email the Guidance team.

Publication

Below is information on when this version of the document was published:

• version 2.0
• published for Home Office staff on 7 August 2025

Changes from last version of this document

This document has been updated with formatting changes.

Gambia: names

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about names in Gambia.

Names in Gambia consist of:

• 1 forename
• 1 or more surnames

Change of name

Name changes are allowed in Gambia.

Gambia: nationality

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about nationality in Gambia.

Dual nationality is recognised in Gambia.

Gambia: legitimacy and parental responsibility

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about legitimacy and parental responsibility in Gambia.

Legitimacy

Gambia does not recognise a difference between legitimate and illegitimate births. This means all births are considered legitimate whether a child’s parents are married or not.

Parental responsibility

In Gambia, both parents hold parental responsibility.

If both the child’s parents are deceased, parental responsibility can pass to guardians or relatives. A court order may be issued confirming who has been given parental responsibility.

Gambia: adoption

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about adoption in Gambia.

Adoption is legal in Gambia.

Gambia: surrogacy

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about surrogacy in Gambia.

Surrogacy is illegal in Gambia.

Gambia: gender recognition

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about gender recognition in Gambia.

Transgender citizens are not recognised in Gambia.

Gambia: civil partnerships and marriage

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about civil partnerships and marriage in Gambia.

Civil partnerships and same sex marriage are not recognised in Gambia.

Gambia recognises:

• civil marriages
• religious marriages
• polygamous Islamic marriages
• proxy marriages

Gambia: documents

This section gives HM Passport Office operational staff information about documents in Gambia.

Birth certificates

All births must be registered within:

• 14 days by the father; or,
• 30 days by the mother

Late registration is allowed but will incur a penalty.

The Public Health Office issue birth certificates when the parents register their child’s birth.

Since 1996, births are registered in the region where a child was born. For births before 1996, there is a central register.

If the parents identify an error on their child’s birth certificate, they can ask for it to be corrected. The original record will be kept but the Gambian authorities will add marginal notes to explain the correction.

Marriage certificates

Marriage certificates are issued by:

• the Ministry of Justice or Registrar’s Office for civil marriages
• the Cadi Court for Islamic marriages

There is no time limit to register a marriage. One type of marriage certificate is issued, and they have a unique identifying number.

Death certificates

In Gambia, deaths are recorded in central and regional registers.

Deaths must be registered within one month by the relatives of the deceased or the doctor who certified the death. The authorities issue a death certificate when one is requested.

The fee for death certificates varies and is set by municipal councils.

Identity documents

Gambia operates a mandatory identity card scheme for citizens. Foreign nationals staying in Gambia longer than 28 days must have a residence permit and a work permit.

Visitors must have a visit visa which allows them to stay in Gambia for a maximum of 28 days.

The national registry office issue identity documents and these are laminated.