South Africa Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA)

The ETA began in October 2025 for G20 delegates and then opened to all tourists from China, India, Indonesia and Mexico. Since the official launch on 12 August 2026 it is becoming compulsory, country by country, for short visits by nationals who need a visa; Home Affairs tells each embassy when its country is added. Study, spousal and work visas are planned to move onto the platform later.

Visa-exempt travellers, such as Turkish citizens on holidays of up to 30 days, do not need an ETA but may opt in for the faster ETA lanes. Trips outside an exemption need a visa from a South African mission.

The fee regulations amended on 17 August 2026 set an electronic processing fee of R500 per ETA. Travellers from visa-required countries that are not exempt from visa fees also pay the R425 visitor’s visa fee, R925 in total, instead of the earlier R1,550 outsourced service charge plus visa fee. Visa-exempt travellers who opt in pay R500.

Create a profile at eta.dha.gov.za, confirm your mobile number and email with one-time PINs, scan your passport and take a selfie. The selfie is matched to the passport photo and the passport is checked against more than 40 security features. After payment an automated risk check runs; no visit to a mission or visa centre is needed.

The Minister of Home Affairs says approved travellers receive the ETA within 24 hours, and it can be stored in a phone’s digital wallet. By May 2026 the approval rate for completed applications was 94%.

ETA lanes with facial recognition work at OR Tambo, Cape Town, King Shaka and Lanseria airports, with land and sea ports to follow; clearance takes under 60 seconds. The ETA covers several trips while valid but not repeated long stays for other purposes, and overstayers are detected by face checks on departure.

Travellers admitted for up to 90 days can request up to 90 more days through the ETA platform, as the Immigration Act allows.

More than 6,000 fraudulent applications, many with forged passports, had been rejected by August 2026. Under section 8 of the Immigration Act an adverse decision comes with reasons, and you can ask the Director-General to review it within 10 working days.