Bangladesh moves arrival and departure cards online for foreign traveler

The portal offers E-Arrival and E-Departure cards alongside the existing advance visa-on-arrival service

Foreign passport holders traveling to or from Bangladesh can now complete their Embarkation and Disembarkation (ED) Card online before reaching the airport. Md Kamrul Islam, Special Superintendent (Immigration) at the Special Branch of the Bangladesh Police, confirmed the launch on August 19, 2026, according to The Daily Star.

The system is accessible through the Special Branch portal which is operated under Bangladesh's Ministry of Home Affairs. The portal offers two separate digital forms: an E-Arrival Card for travelers entering Bangladesh and an E-Departure Card for those leaving the country.

Previously, foreign passport holders had to fill out a paper ED card at the airport counter during every entry to and exit from Bangladesh. The paper process created bottlenecks at immigration checkpoints, particularly for visa-on-arrival applicants who faced additional queuing on top of the standard ED card requirement.

The same Special Branch portal also provides an advance submission option for visa-on-arrival applicants, allowing them to enter their personal and travel information before arriving at the airport. However, this visa-on-arrival feature is not new. Bangladesh's Ministry of Home Affairs launched the advance visa-on-arrival application service on February 13, 2025. The August 2026 development is specifically the digitization of the ED Card through the introduction of the E-Arrival Card and E-Departure Card forms.

Bangladesh has not announced a mandatory submission window for the online ED Card. The authorities have also not confirmed whether the paper form will be discontinued. As of this writing, both the digital and paper options appear to be available for foreign travelers at Bangladesh's airports.

Do I need to fill out an arrival card for Bangladesh?

Yes. All foreign passport holders are required to complete an ED Card when entering or leaving Bangladesh through an airport. The card collects personal, passport, and travel information for immigration processing. The new online option allows travelers to complete this form before their trip, but Bangladesh has not yet made the digital version mandatory or set a deadline for ending the paper form.

How does the Bangladesh visa on arrival work?

Bangladesh offers visa on arrival to nationals of approximately 52 countries at its international airports. The standard visa-on-arrival fee is $51 for most nationalities. The advance application portal on the Special Branch website allows eligible travelers to submit their information before arriving, which is designed to reduce waiting times at the immigration counter.

The visa-on-arrival advance service has been operational since February 2025 and is separate from the newly launched E-Arrival Card.

What is changing in Bangladesh's broader immigration system?

The online ED Card is part of a wider effort by the Bangladesh government to modernize its immigration procedures. The country is working toward a comprehensive new visa policy and has signaled plans for a future eVisa system, though neither has been formally launched. The digitization of the arrival and departure card process represents one of the first visible steps in that broader reform.