Southern Africa
Southern AfricaSouth Africa visa requirements
Travellers from 123 of 198 countries can visit South Africa easily: no visa, a visa at the airport, or a short online form.
What 198 passports need to visit South Africa
Find your own passport in the list below for the exact rule.
- No visa needed93 of 198 passportsJust show your passport at the border.
- eTA needed30 of 198 passportsA short online form, not a full visa.
- eVisa20 of 198 passportsApply on the official website.
- Visa needed55 of 198 passportsApply at the embassy or consulate.
Types of South Africa visa
- Tourist and visitor visas6 optionsSome travellers can visit without a visa for 30 or 90 days. Others can use an ETA, an e-Visa or a visa from a South African embassy or consulate.
- Transit visa3 optionsSouth Africa issues transit visas. Some official passport and international organisation document holders have transit exemptions.
- Business and conference visas3 optionsSouth Africa issues business visas for temporary residence and visas for attending conferences. Certain international organisation travel documents allow visa-free official business visits.
- Study visa1 optionsSouth Africa offers study visas for temporary residence.
- Work visas6 optionsSouth Africa offers several work visa types. These include general work, critical skills and transfers within a company.
- Family visit and relatives' visas2 optionsVisitor visas cover visits to family or friends. A relatives' visa is also listed for temporary residence.
- Medical treatment visa1 optionsSouth Africa issues visas for medical treatment. Medical treatment is also a listed reason for temporary residence.
- South Africa e-Visa1 optionsCitizens of the listed countries can obtain an e-Visa, an online visa. This is separate from the ETA, an online travel permit.
Find your passport
198 of 198 passports
- AndorraVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- AngolaVisa not requiredMiddle Africa30 days
- Antigua and BarbudaVisa not requiredCaribbean30 days
- ArgentinaVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- AustraliaVisa not requiredAustralia and New Zealand90 days
- AustriaVisa not requiredCentral Europe90 days
- BahamasVisa not requiredCaribbean30 days
- BarbadosVisa not requiredCaribbean30 days
- BelgiumVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- BelizeVisa not requiredCentral America30 days
- BeninVisa not requiredWestern Africa30 days
- BoliviaVisa not requiredSouth America30 days
- BotswanaVisa not requiredSouthern Africa90 days
- BrazilVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- BulgariaVisa not requiredSoutheast Europe90 days
- CanadaVisa not requiredNorth America90 days
- Cape VerdeVisa not requiredWestern Africa30 days
- ChileVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- Costa RicaVisa not requiredCentral America30 days
- CroatiaVisa not requiredSoutheast Europe90 days
- CyprusVisa not requiredSouthern Europe30 days
- Czech RepublicVisa not requiredCentral Europe90 days
- DenmarkVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- EcuadorVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- EstoniaVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- EswatiniVisa not requiredSouthern Africa30 days
- FinlandVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- FranceVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- GabonVisa not requiredMiddle Africa30 days
- GermanyVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- GhanaVisa not requiredWestern Africa90 days
- GreeceVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- GuyanaVisa not requiredSouth America30 days
- Hong KongVisa not requiredEastern Asia30 days
- HungaryVisa not requiredCentral Europe90 days
- IcelandVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- IrelandVisa not requiredNorthern Europe
- IsraelVisa not requiredWestern Asia90 days
- ItalyVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- JamaicaVisa not requiredCaribbean90 days
- JapanVisa not requiredEastern Asia90 days
- JordanVisa not requiredWestern Asia30 days
- KenyaVisa not requiredEastern Africa90 days
- LatviaVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- LesothoVisa not requiredSouthern Africa30 days
- LiechtensteinVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- LithuaniaVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- LuxembourgVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- MacauVisa not requiredEastern Asia30 days
- MadagascarVisa not requiredEastern Africa90 days
- MalawiVisa not requiredEastern Africa30 days
- MalaysiaVisa not requiredSouth-Eastern Asia90 days
- MaldivesVisa not requiredSouthern Asia30 days
- MaltaVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- MauritiusVisa not requiredEastern Africa30 days
- MonacoVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- MozambiqueVisa not requiredEastern Africa30 days
- NamibiaVisa not requiredSouthern Africa90 days
- NetherlandsVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- New ZealandVisa not requiredAustralia and New Zealand90 days
- NorwayVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- PanamaVisa not requiredCentral America90 days
- ParaguayVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- PeruVisa not requiredSouth America30 days
- PolandVisa not requiredCentral Europe30 days
- PortugalVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- QatarVisa not requiredWestern Asia90 days
- RomaniaVisa not requiredSoutheast Europe90 days
- RussiaVisa not requiredEastern Europe90 days
- Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesVisa not requiredCaribbean90 days
- San MarinoVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- São Tomé and PríncipeVisa not requiredMiddle Africa90 days
- Saudi ArabiaVisa not requiredWestern Asia90 days
- SeychellesVisa not requiredEastern Africa30 days
- SingaporeVisa not requiredSouth-Eastern Asia90 days
- SlovakiaVisa not requiredCentral Europe90 days
- SloveniaVisa not requiredCentral Europe90 days
- South KoreaVisa not requiredEastern Asia30 days
- SpainVisa not requiredSouthern Europe90 days
- SwedenVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- SwitzerlandVisa not requiredWestern Europe90 days
- TanzaniaVisa not requiredEastern Africa90 days
- ThailandVisa not requiredSouth-Eastern Asia30 days
- Trinidad and TobagoVisa not requiredCaribbean90 days
- TunisiaVisa not requiredNorthern Africa90 days
- TürkiyeVisa not requiredWestern Asia30 days
- United Arab EmiratesVisa not requiredWestern Asia90 days
- United KingdomVisa not requiredNorthern Europe90 days
- United StatesVisa not requiredNorth America90 days
- UruguayVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- VenezuelaVisa not requiredSouth America90 days
- ZambiaVisa not requiredEastern Africa90 days
- ZimbabweVisa not requiredSouthern Africa90 days
- AfghanistaneTA requiredSouthern Asia
- AlbaniaeTA requiredSoutheast Europe
- ArmeniaeTA requiredWestern Asia
- AzerbaijaneTA requiredWestern Asia
- BahraineTA requiredWestern Asia
- BurundieTA requiredEastern Africa
- ChadeTA requiredMiddle Africa
- ChinaeTA requiredEastern Asia90 days
- ComoroseTA requiredEastern Africa
- CongoeTA requiredMiddle Africa
- FijieTA requiredMelanesia
- HaitieTA requiredCaribbean
- IndiaeTA requiredSouthern Asia90 days
- IndonesiaeTA requiredSouth-Eastern Asia90 days
- KuwaiteTA requiredWestern Asia
- LebanoneTA requiredWestern Asia
- MexicoeTA requiredNorth America90 days
- MicronesiaeTA requiredMicronesia
- MoldovaeTA requiredEastern Europe90 days
- MongoliaeTA requiredEastern Asia
- NicaraguaeTA requiredCentral America
- PalestineeTA requiredWestern Asia90 days
- SudaneTA requiredNorthern Africa
- SyriaeTA requiredWestern Asia
- TajikistaneTA requiredCentral Asia
- TurkmenistaneTA requiredCentral Asia
- UkraineeTA requiredEastern Europe90 days
- UzbekistaneTA requiredCentral Asia
- VietnameTA requiredSouth-Eastern Asia90 days
- YemeneTA requiredWestern Asia
- AlgeriaeVisaNorthern Africa
- BelaruseVisaEastern Europe
- CamerooneVisaMiddle Africa
- CubaeVisaCaribbean
- DR CongoeVisaMiddle Africa30 days
- EgypteVisaNorthern Africa
- EthiopiaeVisaEastern Africa
- GuineaeVisaWestern Africa
- IraneVisaSouthern Asia
- Ivory CoasteVisaWestern Africa
- LiberiaeVisaWestern Africa
- MalieVisaWestern Africa30 days
- MoroccoeVisaNorthern Africa
- NigereVisaWestern Africa
- NigeriaeVisaWestern Africa
- OmaneVisaWestern Asia30 days
- PakistaneVisaSouthern Asia
- PhilippineseVisaSouth-Eastern Asia
- SenegaleVisaWestern Africa
- UgandaeVisaEastern Africa
- BangladeshVisa requiredSouthern Asia
- BhutanVisa requiredSouthern Asia
- Bosnia and HerzegovinaVisa requiredSoutheast Europe
- BruneiVisa requiredSouth-Eastern Asia
- Burkina FasoVisa requiredWestern Africa
- CambodiaVisa requiredSouth-Eastern Asia
- Central African RepublicVisa requiredMiddle Africa
- ColombiaVisa requiredSouth America
- DjiboutiVisa requiredEastern Africa
- DominicaVisa requiredCaribbean
- Dominican RepublicVisa requiredCaribbean
- El SalvadorVisa requiredCentral America
- Equatorial GuineaVisa requiredMiddle Africa
- EritreaVisa requiredEastern Africa
- GambiaVisa requiredWestern Africa
- GeorgiaVisa requiredWestern Asia
- GrenadaVisa requiredCaribbean
- GuatemalaVisa requiredCentral America
- Guinea-BissauVisa requiredWestern Africa
- HondurasVisa requiredCentral America
- IraqVisa requiredWestern Asia
- KazakhstanVisa requiredCentral Asia
- KiribatiVisa requiredMicronesia
- KosovoVisa requiredSoutheast Europe
- KyrgyzstanVisa requiredCentral Asia
- LaosVisa requiredSouth-Eastern Asia
- LibyaVisa requiredNorthern Africa
- Marshall IslandsVisa requiredMicronesia
- MauritaniaVisa requiredWestern Africa
- MontenegroVisa requiredSoutheast Europe
- MyanmarVisa requiredSouth-Eastern Asia
- NauruVisa requiredMicronesia
- NepalVisa requiredSouthern Asia
- North KoreaVisa requiredEastern Asia
- North MacedoniaVisa requiredSoutheast Europe
- PalauVisa requiredMicronesia
- Papua New GuineaVisa requiredMelanesia
- RwandaVisa requiredEastern Africa
- Saint Kitts and NevisVisa requiredCaribbean
- Saint LuciaVisa requiredCaribbean
- SamoaVisa requiredPolynesia
- SerbiaVisa requiredSoutheast Europe
- Sierra LeoneVisa requiredWestern Africa
- Solomon IslandsVisa requiredMelanesia
- SomaliaVisa requiredEastern Africa
- South SudanVisa requiredMiddle Africa
- Sri LankaVisa requiredSouthern Asia
- SurinameVisa requiredSouth America
- TaiwanVisa requiredEastern Asia
- Timor-LesteVisa requiredSouth-Eastern Asia
- TogoVisa requiredWestern Africa
- TongaVisa requiredPolynesia
- TuvaluVisa requiredPolynesia
- VanuatuVisa requiredMelanesia
- Vatican CityVisa requiredSouthern Europe
Who can visit easily, by part of the world
For each part of the world: how many countries' travellers can come easily. Easy means no visa, a visa at the airport, or a short online form.
- Europe39 of 46 countries
- Americas24 of 35 countries
- Asia31 of 50 countries
- Africa25 of 53 countries
- Oceania4 of 14 countries
Questions
How many passports can enter South Africa without a visa?
123 of 198 passports can enter without applying before travel.
What is the most common entry rule for South Africa?
No visa needed: it applies to 93 passports.
Which passports need an embassy visa for South Africa?
55 passports, including Bangladesh, Colombia, Myanmar, Iraq Nepal, and 50 more.
Do India passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
eTA needed, for up to 90 days.
Do China passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
eTA needed, for up to 90 days.
Do United States passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
No visa needed, for up to 90 days.
Do Nigeria passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
eVisa.
Do Pakistan passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
eVisa.
Do Brazil passport holders need a visa for South Africa?
No visa needed, for up to 90 days.
Which region's passports have the easiest access to South Africa?
Europe: 39 of 46 passports enter without applying first.
Reviewed by @snuck