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Africa destination

South Africa visa requirements

Current entry categories for 199 passport nationalities, paired with official evidence as it is reviewed.

Access data checked August 24, 20263 official sources collected
Citizenship1Visa-free93eVisa27Visa required78
Passport directory

Access by passport

Open any status for its canonical passport–destination page, evidence timeline, official sources, and application route where available.

199 passports

Citizenship

1

Visa-free

93

eVisa

27

Visa required

78
Policy history

Official evidence timeline

One group agreement or destination policy can support many passport relationships. Dates are recorded only when an official source establishes them.

  1. Current official routeVisa-free

    South Africa: 30-day ordinary-passport visa exemption

    DHA's current exemption schedule marks these ordinary national passports exempt for 30 days.

    • Ordinary national passport holders only, for bona fide holiday or business visits, and only for the 30-day period listed by DHA.
    • The list is subject to change without notice and individual visa exemption can be officially withdrawn, requiring a port-of-entry visa application.
    • This does not classify diplomatic, official, service, special, laissez-passer, crew, military, transit, residence, work, accreditation, document, purpose, admissibility, or case-specific exceptions.
    24 passport nationalities covered

    Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Cape Verde Islands, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Gabon, Guyana, Hong Kong (SAR China), Jordan, eSwatini, Macao (SAR China), Malawi, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Peru, Poland, South Korea, Thailand, Türkiye

    Official sourcesSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs: Countries exempt from South African visasSouth African Government: South African Government: Home Affairs immigration and visa requirements
  2. Current official routeVisa-free

    South Africa: 90-day ordinary-passport visa exemption

    DHA's current exemption schedule marks these ordinary national passports exempt for 90 days.

    • Ordinary national passport holders only, for bona fide holiday or business visits, and only for the 90-day period listed by DHA.
    • The list is subject to change without notice and individual visa exemption can be officially withdrawn, requiring a port-of-entry visa application.
    • This does not classify diplomatic, official, service, special, laissez-passer, crew, military, transit, residence, work, accreditation, document, purpose, admissibility, or case-specific exceptions.
    61 passport nationalities covered

    Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, San Marino, São Tomé and Príncipe, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Belgium, Latvia, Monaco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia

    Official sourcesSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs: Countries exempt from South African visasSouth African Government: South African Government: Home Affairs immigration and visa requirements
  3. Current official routeVisa-free

    South Africa: annual/calendar-year ordinary-passport visa exemption

    DHA's current exemption schedule marks these ordinary national passports exempt for up to 90 days per annum or calendar year.

    • DHA marks these ordinary passports 90 Days P/A, defined in the schedule as per annum or per calendar year; this is not an unrestricted 90-day-per-visit rule.
    • For Angola, DHA additionally says each visit may not exceed 30 days.
    • This does not classify diplomatic, official, service, special, laissez-passer, crew, military, transit, residence, work, accreditation, document, purpose, admissibility, or case-specific exceptions.
    8 passport nationalities covered

    Angola, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Namibia, Seychelles, Tanzania, Zambia

    Official sourcesSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs: Countries exempt from South African visasSouth African Government: South African Government: Home Affairs immigration and visa requirements
  4. Current official routeeVisa

    South Africa: ordinary-passport eVisa availability

    These non-exempt ordinary-passport nationalities are on DHA's current eVisa-availability list.

    • Only for nationalities named by DHA's current eVisa availability page and not separately exempt under the current DHA exemption schedule.
    • An eVisa is still a prior visa: it is an electronic alternative to a paper visa, not visa-free admission or a visa on arrival.
    • Does not classify diplomatic, official, service, special, laissez-passer, crew, military, transit, residence, work, accreditation, document, purpose, admissibility, or case-specific exceptions.
    27 passport nationalities covered

    Albania, Algeria, Belarus, Cameroon, Comoro Islands, Congo (Dem. Rep.), Congo (Rep.), Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Liberia, Mali, Mexico, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, China, Philippines, Guinea, Senegal, Uganda

    Official sourcesSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs ePermits: eVisa availabilitySouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs: Countries exempt from South African visasSouth African Government: South African Government: Home Affairs immigration and visa requirements
  5. Current official routeVisa required

    South Africa: ordinary-passport port-of-entry visa required

    The official visa baseline requires a valid visa for foreign nationals other than current exemption-list holders; DHA's eVisa list does not include these nationalities.

    • Ordinary national passports only, for a short visit; this is the current default where the nationality is not on DHA's complete ordinary-passport exemption schedule or current eVisa availability list.
    • A visa authorizes travel to a port of entry but admission remains subject to immigration examination and all document, purpose, funds, onward-travel, health, and admissibility requirements.
    • Does not override diplomatic, official, service, special, laissez-passer, crew, military, transit, residence, family, humanitarian, waiver, work, accreditation, document, territorial, or case-specific treatment.
    78 passport nationalities covered

    Brunei, St. Kitts and Nevis, Vatican City, Grenada, Dominica, St. Lucia, Ukraine, Serbia, Taiwan (Chinese Taipei), Solomon Islands, Guatemala, El Salvador, Colombia, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Samoa, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Tonga, Tuvalu, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Nicaragua, Georgia, Kiribati, Micronesia, Palau Islands, Moldova, Kuwait, Timor-Leste, Bahrain, Fiji, Vanuatu, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Suriname, Dominican Republic, Rwanda, The Gambia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Mongolia, Sierra Leone, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Burkina Faso, Togo, Mauritania, Equatorial Guinea, Tajikistan, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Burundi, Central African Republic, Vietnam, Bhutan, Cambodia, Haiti, Djibouti, Laos, Turkmenistan, Myanmar, Lebanon, Sudan, South Sudan, Libya, Sri Lanka, Eritrea, Palestinian Territory, Bangladesh, North Korea, Nepal, Somalia, Yemen, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan

    Official sourcesSouth African Government: South African Government: Home Affairs immigration and visa requirementsSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs: Countries exempt from South African visasSouth African Department of Home Affairs: Department of Home Affairs ePermits: eVisa availability