South Africa Visa – Requirements and Application

Neither a tourist nor business visa is required for travel to South Africa if saying for less than 90 days. A passport with 30 days validity is required with two empty pages for entry stamp. If you don’t have two blank pages on your passport, you will not be allowed to enter South Africa.

South Africa Entry Requirements
Do I Need A…	For My Trip to South Africa?
Passport
Tourist Visa
Business Visa
Vaccinations

Sources: South Africa Embassy and U.S. State Department

Tourist and Business visas are not required for travel to South Africa. Even though these visas aren’t required, you will need your passport, your passport photo, and proof of travel.

If you are planning to stay for more than 90 days, a visa is required. Documents needed for a visa can vary, check with a travel documents expert for more information.

Passport Health has partnered with industry leaders in travel document services, RushMyPassport and G3 Travel Services. These teams will walk you through the visa process step-by-step and handle the sometimes difficult communication with embassies and consulates.

Visa pricing varies based on type of visa, length of stay and number of entries. South African visas generally start around $30.

Service and consular fees as well as postage are not generally included in the price of a visa.

Most travelers need a hepatitis A and typhoid vaccine while some travelers should receive hepatitis B or rabies vaccinations.

Proof of yellow fever vaccination is required if arriving from a country where yellow fever is present.

For more information on vaccines, discover our South Africa destination advice page.

All Americans visiting South Africa should register online with the U.S. Department of State before departure. This will inform the office of your travel plans within the country and will allow them to reach out in the case of an emergency or evacuation.

Once in South Africa, the information for the U.S. embassy is:

U.S. Consulate General Johannesburg
1 Sandton Drive (opposite Sandton City Mall)
Johannesburg 2196
South Africa
Telephone: +(27)(11) 290-3000 / 011-290-3000 (from within South Africa)
Emergency After-Hours Telephone: +(27) 79-111-1684 / 079-111-1684 (from within South Africa)
Fax: +(27)(11) 884-0396 / 011-884-0396 (from within South Africa)
Email: consularjohannesburg@state.gov

See Passport Health’s South Africa destination advice page with information on safety, climate and more. Or, start your visa process by filling out a form today!