Police checkpoints in Zanzibar: what to expect and what to carry

If you drive here for a week, you will be waved down at a checkpoint. Probably more than once.

This is routine. Checkpoints are a normal part of traffic policing on Zanzibar, they stop residents and visitors alike, and with your paperwork in order the whole thing takes about two minutes. Most visitors who worry about this beforehand report afterwards that it was unremarkable.

Here is what actually happens and what to have ready.

Where checkpoints appear

Most sit on the main routes between towns, often near junctions, town boundaries or the approaches to Stone Town. Some are permanent fixtures that you will pass repeatedly on the same road. Others appear for a day and are gone.

You will usually see them well before you reach them: a group of officers at the roadside, sometimes cones or a barrier, and vehicles slowing ahead of you.

What to do when you are waved down

Slow down early and pull over where indicated. Do not stop in the middle of the carriageway, and do not accelerate past because you were not certain the signal was for you.

Stay in the car unless you are asked to get out. This is the normal expectation.

Lower your window and greet the officer. A greeting matters more here than most visitors realise, and it sets the tone for the whole exchange.

Hand over what is asked for, and no more. There is no need to volunteer your whole document folder.

Keep the engine off and your hands visible while you talk. Nothing dramatic, just ordinary courtesy.

Remember that rental cars here are right-hand drive, so the officer will approach on the right side, which is your side as the driver.

What officers check

In rough order of how often it comes up:

• Your Zanzibar driving permit and home licence. The permit is the one people do not have. Your home licence alone does not make you legal to drive here, and neither does an International Driving Permit.
• Seatbelts, for everyone in the vehicle, front and back.
• The vehicle inspection sticker on the windscreen. This is your rental company's responsibility, so check it exists before you drive away.
• Speed, where a check is in place.
• Vehicle documents, meaning the rental agreement and the car's paperwork.

The four documents to keep within reach

Not in a suitcase in the boot. In the glovebox or a door pocket where you can hand them over without getting out:

1. Your Zanzibar driving permit
2. Your original home driving licence, not a photograph of it
3. Your passport
4. The rental agreement and vehicle documents

Photocopies are not a substitute for the originals. If you are nervous about carrying your passport, carry it anyway, and keep a photograph of it on your phone as a backup rather than the other way round.

If you do not yet have the permit sorted: what it costs and how to get one

How traffic fines work

[EXTERNAL SOURCE NEEDED] Link the official published traffic penalty schedule. If no citable official source exists, delete the specific figures rather than sourcing them from travel forums.

Traffic offences here carry set amounts rather than negotiated ones. Speeding penalties for the kinds of offence visitors commit are modest, generally in the range of 10 to 15 US dollars equivalent, and the minimum traffic fine is around 30,000 Tanzanian shillings.

An official fine comes with an official receipt. If you are issued a penalty, you should receive documentation of it.

You are entitled to know which specific offence you are alleged to have committed. Asking politely is normal and reasonable.

If there is a disagreement about the facts, you can ask for the matter to be dealt with at the nearest police station rather than at the roadside. That is an ordinary procedural option, and requesting it calmly is not confrontational.

A few words of Swahili go a long way

You do not need to speak the language, but three phrases change the temperature of almost any exchange here, at a checkpoint or anywhere else.

• Shikamoo (shee-KAH-moh). A respectful greeting to someone older or in a position of authority. The reply is marahaba. Using this correctly is noticed.
• Habari? (hah-BAH-ree). How are things. The everyday greeting. Reply: nzuri.
• Asante sana (ah-SAHN-tay SAH-nah). Thank you very much.

Greeting someone before getting to business is not a nicety here, it is the expected order of things. Launching straight into the transaction reads as brusque.

After an accident, the police are not optional

A checkpoint stop is routine. An accident is the other situation in which you will deal with the police here, and the rules are different.

Do not move the vehicles until the police have attended, unless they are creating an immediate danger to other traffic. Insurers and officers both work from the position the vehicles came to rest in.

Call your rental company immediately. They will tell you what their insurer requires and can often reach the right people faster than you can.

Get a police report. Insurance claims here generally require one, and obtaining it afterwards is considerably harder than at the scene.

Photograph the scene, including both vehicles, the road, and any damage, before anything is moved. Photographing the scene is fine. Photographing officers is not.

Do not agree a private settlement at the roadside, however reasonable it sounds. If you settle privately and later discover the damage is worse than it looked, you have no claim and no report.

One thing you must not do

Photographing or filming police officers is illegal in Tanzania.

Some travel advice online suggests recording interactions with authorities. Following that advice here would put you in the position of committing an actual offence during a routine stop. Leave your phone alone.

Frequently asked questions

How often will I be stopped in Zanzibar? It varies by route and by day. Over a week of driving, expect several stops, particularly on the main roads between Stone Town and the coasts.

Do I need to speak Swahili at a checkpoint? No. Officers dealing with traffic on tourist routes generally speak English. A greeting in Swahili is appreciated but not required.

What if I do not have my permit with me?

Carry it. Driving without the required permit can result in a fine, and more importantly your insurance may not respond if you have an accident while not legally permitted to drive.

Can I pay a fine at the roadside? An official fine comes with an official receipt. If you are unclear about what you are being asked to pay or why, you can ask for the matter to be handled at the nearest police station.

Should I get out of the car? Only if asked. The normal expectation is that you stay in the vehicle.

Checkpoints are one of a handful of things about driving here that look intimidating from a distance and turn out to be routine. The rest of the picture, from road surfaces to realistic journey times, is in our full guide to driving in Zanzibar.

Fine amounts and procedures change. If something here no longer matches your experience, tell us and we will correct it.