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Border post · Zimbabwe to Botswana

Plumtree

Matabeleland South · 20.54°S 27.74°E

Short answer

Plumtree border post is open from 06:00 to 22:00 on the Zimbabwean side (checked 18 October 2026). It crosses to Ramokgwebana in Botswana.

Hours
06:00 to 22:00Zimbabwean side · checked
Other side
Ramokgwebana (Botswana)
Nearest town
Plumtree
Road
A7

What to know

  • Botswana's Immigration Department (April 2025), KAZA.org and the SADC table of 2019 all give 06:00 to 22:00, and the Herald calls 22:00 the normal closing time. Zimbabwe has opened it round the clock for a few days before Christmas in several years (2013, 2016 and 2019), but only when Botswana agrees to match: in April 2016 Botswana would not.
  • On the main road between Bulawayo and Francistown, where the Ramokgwebana River marks the border at Plumtree town, about 100 km from Bulawayo. The Chronicle put its traffic at about seven million travellers a year before Covid.
  • A one-stop border post with Botswana has been talked about since ZIMRA and the Botswana Unified Revenue Service signed a memorandum to start negotiations in 2013. At the fifth Zimbabwe-Botswana Bi-National Commission in Harare in April 2026, Botswana's President Duma Boko called for one to be set up urgently, so for now you still clear twice.
  • In December many Zimbabweans coming home use the small Mphoengs and Maitengwe posts instead, to stay out of the Plumtree queue.
  • Foreign-registered cars need a Temporary Import Permit from ZIMRA at the border (ZIMRA says its services are free; hired cars need a Commercial TIP backed by a clearing agent's guarantee) and pay carbon tax and third party insurance at the ZIMRA counter, in US dollars. ZIMRA's own guide puts the two at US$10 and US$30 a month and the Herald (July 2026) at about US$40 together for a car. The US$10 road access fee that light vehicles paid on each entry was scrapped by Statutory Instrument 113 of 2026, gazetted on 24 July 2026, because ZINARA's toll gates already charge for the road.
  • Carry US dollar cash. Border charges in Zimbabwe are quoted in US dollars; the ZiG has been the local currency since 8 April 2024, and paying in foreign currency stays legal until the end of 2030.

Bring with you

  • Your passport
  • The vehicle's registration papers
  • For a hired car, the rental company's letter of authority to take it across
  • Whatever Botswana asks of your passport: visa, fees and the papers it wants to see
Entry rules for Botswana

Quick answers

What time does Plumtree border post open and close?

06:00 to 22:00 on the Zimbabwean side. Botswana's Immigration Department (April 2025), KAZA.org and the SADC table of 2019 all give 06:00 to 22:00, and the Herald calls 22:00 the normal closing time. Zimbabwe has opened it round the clock for a few days before Christmas in several years (2013, 2016 and 2019), but only when Botswana agrees to match: in April 2016 Botswana would not.

Where does Plumtree border post go?

It crosses to Ramokgwebana in Botswana. The nearest Zimbabwean town is Plumtree.

Places to stay within 40 km

4
  • Dingumuzi Hostel
    Hostel
    8.4 KM
  • house
    Hotel
    17.8 KM
  • Modumela Lodge Campsite
    Campsite
    17.8 KM
  • Omadu Lodge
    Guest house
    6.3 KM

Sources

  1. Botswana Department of Immigration and Citizenship, ports of entry with operating hours (PDF, updated April 2025, copy hosted by pcf11.org)checked 18 Oct 2026, official
  2. KAZA.org, border crossings guide (2026)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  3. SADC non-tariff barriers register, NTB-000-075, table of border operating hours (2019 progress report)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  4. The Herald, Hive of activity at border posts (23 December 2019)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  5. The Chronicle, Plumtree border opens 24 hours a day (23 December 2016)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  6. The Chronicle, Plumtree Border Post traffic volumes increase (24 December 2013)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  7. The Chronicle, It's all systems go at borders (1 December 2020)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  8. Financial Gazette, Zimbabwe, Botswana cement bilateral ties (23 April 2026)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  9. The Herald, Govt scraps duplicative access fees in transport sector, on Statutory Instrument 113 of 2026 (28 July 2026)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  10. ZIMRA, Temporary Importation for Visitors' Vehicles (undated guide: TIP, third party insurance, carbon tax, road access fee)checked 18 Oct 2026, official
  11. Wikipedia, Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG official currency since 8 April 2024; foreign currency payments valid until 31 December 2030)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  12. Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, Getting to Zimbabwe (lists the ten main road border posts, no hours)checked 18 Oct 2026, official
  13. Wikipedia, Plumtree, Zimbabwechecked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  14. Wikipedia, Roads in Zimbabwe (A-road numbers and end points)checked 18 Oct 2026, one source only
  15. OpenStreetMap, Plumtree Border Post nodechecked 18 Oct 2026, one source only

Cite as: Travel Africa Guide, "Plumtree border post hours", checked 18 October 2026, https://travelafrica.guide/zimbabwe/border-posts/plumtree/