South African Department of Home Affairs

South African visa

Tariff:
R425.00 or US$47.00 or €43.00

Processing time:
10 days

Available at:
All South African embassies or missions abroad

Every country has the sovereign right to decide who may or may not enter its territory. Possession of a visa does not guarantee automatic admission to the Republic. It only authorizes the holder to proceed to the Republic to report to an immigration officer at a port of entry for the purpose of being examined as to his/her ability or otherwise, to comply with the (entry) requirements of the Act.

The purpose of a visa on the one hand is to ensure proper screening of applicants so that undesirable persons are not admitted to the Republic and on the other hand to facilitate the entry of approved applicants at South African ports of entry. Visas provide immigration officers with the necessary information to ensure that applicants are admitted for the correct purpose and period into the RSA.

Any queries relating to visas are handled by the South African missions or representative office in your country or the nearest one situated to you. Visas are considered by the South African missions abroad and must be affixed in the applicants' passports before departing to the RSA. Visas are not issued on arrival at South African ports of entry. Applicants arriving without visas will be refused entry into the RSA and placed on return flights in terms of legislation.

For more information, please select a topic below:

Visa requirements (what to submit)
Where to apply for a South African visa
Medical visas
To find out if you require a visa and/or pay South African visa tariffs, please see the list of countries exempt from visa control

Visa requirements (what to submit)

Passport valid for no less than 30 days after the expiry of the intended visit.
Passports must contain at least 1 (one) unused page for entry/departure endorsements (sometimes referred to as visa page).
Payment of the prescribed fee, if applicable (see Countries exempt from visa control).
A vaccination certificate, if required by the Act.
Statement and/or documentation confirming purpose and duration of visit.
Two (2) identity photographs (see specifications below).
Proof of financial means in the form of:
- bank statements;
- salary advices;
- undertaking(s) by the host(s) in the Republic;
- bursaries;
- medical cover;
- or cash available, including credit cards or travellers' cheques
to cover the living expenses during the sojourn in the Republic.
Applicants traveling by air must be in possession of:
- a return or onward ticket; or
- proof of sufficient funds; or
- lodge a cash deposit of equivalent value to such a ticket.

NOTE:
You do not have to submit your application for a visa in person. Please see the answer to Frequently Asked Question 7 for more information.

Persons in transit

Transit Visa requirement has been suspended by the Minister of Home Affairs

Duration and purpose of stay

The period of residence in the RSA will be determined from the applicant's date of admission to the Republic in accordance with any conditions that appear on the visa. On admission, the visa will be deemed to be a visitor's permit. Applicants must ensure that they request the full duration of their intended visits under item 28 of the application form, as renewals are subject to additional fees.

Applicants must also ensure that they apply for the correct visa (transit or visitor's) or temporary residence permit reflecting the true purpose of the visit, as any changes in the purpose of stay will only be approved in the RSA for good cause and if the requirements of the Act are complied with.

NOTE:
If the purpose of the visit is in respect of sabbatical; voluntary or charitable activities; research; joining or accompanying a spouse who is on a temporary permit in the Republic; work related activities for which a permit is not prescribed or visits that are longer than three months, the requirements prescribed under visitor's permit must be met.

WARNING:
Any applicant allowed entry into South Africa due to any misrepresentation, or false declaration on the application form or who sojourns in the Republic in contravention of his/her visa/permit conditions shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment as an illegal foreigner.

Where to apply for a South African visa

At the South African diplomatic or consular representative in the applicant's country of normal residence, which includes permanent residence and long-term temporary residence.
At the South African diplomatic or consular representative in the country of which the applicant validly holds a valid passport.
At the designated South African diplomatic or consular representative when a mission is not present in the applicant's country of residence.

NB:
Applications lodged at a place other than the above may be referred by the consular officer to the above offices which will imply a longer processing time.
Visas CANNOT be applied for at South African ports of entry.

Medical visas (visitor's visas for medical treatment of less than three [3] months)

A person wishing to receive medical treatment in the RSA must first apply for a visitor's visa at the nearest South African Mission, if he or she is subject to South African visa control. Foreigners who are exempt from South African visa control may enter for the period for which they are exempt, provided that it does not exceed three months.

Foreigners who require medical treatment for a period exceeding three months must apply for a medical treatment permit.

Photographs

Photographs must comply to the following specifications:

Length - 45mm
Width - 35mm
The background of the photograph shall be plain and free of shadows and shall not have a white lining
Only the head and shoulders of the person concerned shall be included in the photograph and the head from the chin to the top of the hair shall not be smaller 22mm and not larger than 25mm
The person concerned shall be photographed without any head-gear or veil, and any other additions to the face which tend to alter the natural likeness shall be removed. (The Director-General may exempt any person or any category of persons from any of these requirements.)
Spectacles may be worn provided that the lenses do not make the eyes invisible. Spectacles with dark lenses may be worn if the eyes will appear distorted without them or if the person is blind
The full-face of the person concerned shall be photographed directly from the front, and the head may not be bent or tuned sideways
The face shall be a recognizable likeness of the person and the head, hair, eyebrows, eyes, nose and moustache or beard, if any, shall be sharply and clearly defined
Neither the photograph nor the copies thereof may be defaced by holes, pencil or ink marks or in any other manner

The Director-General may reject the copies of the photographs if they do not, in his or her judgment, comply with the requirements mentioned above, or if he or she deem them unsuitable in other respects, in which case the person concerned shall provide two new copies at his or her own cost.

Identity document and passport photographs could be taken at regional or district offices equipped for this service, at a cost of R13-00 for a frame of four black and white photographs.