Law no. 2024-31 · Republic of Benin · My Afro Origins

Your ancestors were taken from this coast.
Benin now lets you come back as a citizen.

Since the law of September 2, 2024, any adult descended from Africans deported during the transatlantic slave trade can apply for Beninese nationality, as long as they hold the nationality of a non-African country and can document their ancestry. The application is filed online on myafroorigins.bj, for a processing fee of 100 US dollars. Applied from abroad, it first gives you a certificate of eligibility valid three years: nationality is granted on proof of a stay in Benin within that time.

Verified on September 27, 2026

Every fact on this page comes from the law as amended by Law no. 2025-11 of July 1, 2025, the Beninese government or the Embassy of Benin, listed below. The procedure belongs to the Beninese state alone: the official portal always has the last word.

By Bertian Hounon, founder of the NGO Wa Afriki

The Door of No Return in Ouidah lit at night, relief of captives walking to the sea — The Door of No Return, Ouidah: where captives were shipped from, and where Law 2024-31 invites their descendants back. Photo: Antoine Miassi, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Official My Afro Origins portal →

The law at a glance

The text	Law no. 2024-31 of September 2, 2024, on the recognition of Beninese nationality for Afro-descendants, amended by Law no. 2025-11 of July 1, 2025
Who	Anyone aged 18 or over, national of a non-African state or territory, with a sub-Saharan African ancestor deported during the slave trade
Where to apply	Online only, on myafroorigins.bj, official portal opened on July 4, 2025, in English, French, Portuguese and Spanish
Cost	100 US dollars of processing fees, paid on the portal
First answer	A certificate of eligibility for Beninese nationality, valid three years and not renewable, with free entry, stay and exit (articles 8 and 12)
The condition	Proof of a stay on Beninese soil within those three years (article 9)
The end point	Beninese nationality by recognition, a certificate of nationality and the right to a Beninese passport (article 13)
For your children	Nationality by recognition passes to your minor children (article 14)
Full nationality	After at least two years of residence in Benin, with all the rights attached (article 15)

Sources

The three-year rule.
The line most guides skip.

You can start everything from Atlanta, London or Salvador. But if you apply from abroad, what you receive first is a certificate of eligibility for Beninese nationality, valid three years and not renewable.

To be granted nationality, the law asks for one thing no website can do for you: set foot in Benin. You justify a stay on Beninese soil within the three years following the certificate (article 9 of the law, as amended in 2025).

Miss that window and the certificate lapses, with no renewal. Keep it, and you walk away with the nationality, the right to a passport, and a nationality your minor children receive.

Proofs of stay accepted by the Beninese authorities

Entry and exit stamps in your passport
Your certificate of eligibility, or an entry and stay visa
A standardized hotel invoice
A notarized rental agreement

That trip is where we come in.
Not as a travel agency. As family.

Any hotel can hand you an invoice. Nobody can buy you what Ouidah gives the people it recognizes: a family that receives you, elders who hear your story, a place to come back to.

ONG Wa Afriki (No. 0108/MISP) has been building those ties in Ouidah since 2019. The families who welcome you are named. The guardians of tradition who guide you are named. The money you leave here stays here, and it shows.

If the law brings you to Benin, come to the city your ancestors were taken from. Stand at the port. Walk the route. Then go back with more than a stamp.

See where the money goes →

Step by step

1. Gather your proof

Civil records, genealogy, authenticated testimony or a DNA test from a body recognized by Benin. See the list of documents below.

2. Apply online

Create your account on myafroorigins.bj, fill in the form, upload your documents, pay the 100 dollar fee. You track your file from your account.

3. Receive your certificate of eligibility

About one month for a complete file filed from abroad, according to the Embassy. It opens the door: free entry, stay and exit from Benin for three years, not renewable.

4. Come to Benin

At any point in the three years. This is the stay the law asks for, and the trip most people have waited their whole lives to make.

5. Justify your stay

Within the three years following the certificate, nationality by recognition is granted on proof of your stay in Benin (article 9). The practical steps are set out on the official portal.

6. Certificate, passport, children

You receive a certificate of Beninese nationality by recognition and the right to a Beninese passport (article 13). Your minor children receive it too (article 14). After at least two years of residence in Benin, you can acquire full nationality and all its rights (article 15).

The documents you will need

According to the Embassy of Benin, a complete file contains:

A written application with your full name, address and place of residence
The online form, completed on the portal
Proof of your occupation
A birth certificate, or an extract less than three months old
Proof of your current nationality
Any document proving your African descent
A criminal record from your country, less than three months old
Proof of residence issued by the authorities of your country
One passport photo on a white background
A copy of a valid ID

Foreign documents must be notarized or apostilled, and translated into French by a certified translator or a Beninese mission abroad. Check the portal before you send anything: requirements can change.

"Benin & Togo" on my DNA results. Is that enough?

Your results can be one piece of the file, not a guarantee. The Embassy's FAQ accepts a DNA test performed by a body recognized by the Republic of Benin, alongside civil records, authenticated testimony, or proven descent from someone already recognized as an Afro-descendant.

Before paying for a new test, ask the portal which laboratories are recognized. And remember what a DNA label does not tell you: a village, a family, a name. That part is found here, not in a lab.

What "Benin & Togo" really means →

What we do not do

We do not file your application, and no one can file it for you outside the official portal.
We do not give legal advice and we do not issue any document.
No trip with us speeds up or influences the decision of the Beninese state. Anyone who promises you nationality against payment is lying to you.

It has already happened

On July 26, 2025, in Cotonou, the American singer Ciara received her documents from the Minister of Justice, among the very first people recognized under the law. After the ceremony, she walked the Slave Route in Ouidah to the Door of No Return.

In May 2026, Cassandra Lewis became the first descendant of the Clotilda, the last slave ship known to have reached the United States, to become Beninese. Her ancestor Kossola, known as Cudjo Lewis, was among the 110 captives embarked at Ouidah in 1860.

The Clotilda, the slave ship that sailed from Ouidah →

Your questions

How do I get Beninese citizenship as an African American?

Apply online on myafroorigins.bj with proof of your descent and pay the 100 dollar fee. You receive a certificate of eligibility valid three years. Travel to Benin within that time: nationality is granted on proof of your stay.

Who is eligible under Benin's Law 2024-31?

Anyone aged 18 or over, national of a non-African state or territory, who can prove a sub-Saharan African ancestor deported during the transatlantic slave trade. Holding the nationality of another African country makes you ineligible.

Do I have to live in Benin to become a citizen?

No, you do not have to live there to be granted nationality by recognition. Applied from abroad, you get a certificate of eligibility valid three years, and nationality is granted on proof of a stay in Benin within that time. Full nationality, with all its rights, requires at least two years of residence.

How much does it cost and how long does it take?

The processing fee is 100 US dollars. According to the FAQ of the Embassy of Benin in Washington (June 2025), a first answer comes in about one month for a complete file. Notarization and translations are extra.

Is a DNA test from AncestryDNA or 23andMe accepted?

A DNA test is accepted if it is performed by a body recognized by the Republic of Benin. Check the list on the official portal before relying on a consumer kit. Civil records and authenticated testimony are also accepted.

Do I get a Beninese passport?

Yes. Nationality by recognition gives the right to a certificate of nationality and a Beninese passport (article 13 of the law). It passes to your minor children.

Can After Vodundays apply for me?

No. Only you can apply, on the official portal. What we offer is the stay itself: being received in Ouidah by the families and guardians of tradition of ONG Wa Afriki.

ONG Wa Afriki · No. 0108/MISP · Ouidah, Benin