The South African Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has recently expanded its e-Visa program, now including 20 additional nationalities.

Benefits of the e-Visa System:

• Simplifies the application process
• Reduces visa processing time
• Eliminates the need for visiting a South African consulate

The South Africa e-Visa was first launched in February 2022, and since then, more than 12,377 visa applications have been processed through the online system.

Following the resolution of initial technical issues like slow network speeds, the government decided to extend the program's eligibility. Additionally, they have established an enhanced e-Visa hub to streamline the process further.

New Nationalities Eligible for South Africa e-Visa Application

South Africa e-Visa program has extended its reach to include the following nationalities:

• Albania
• Algeria
• Belarus
• Bulgaria
• Cuba
• Comoros
• Republic of Congo
• Croatia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Indonesia
• Côte d’Ivoire
• Lithuania
• Liberia
• Mali
• Morocco
• Niger
• Romania
• Senegal

This addition builds upon the initial 14 countries eligible for the e-Visa:

• Cameroon
• China
• DR Congo
• Egypt
• Ethiopia
• Kenya
• India
• Iran
• Mexico
• Nigeria
• Philippines
• Pakistan
• Saudi Arabia
• Uganda

The latest update brings the total count of eligible nationalities to 34.

Future Visa Developments

The South African government has plans to introduce Start-up and Remote Work visas by June 2023. These forthcoming visas are part of President Cyril Ramaphosa's broader initiative to attract skilled labor to South Africa, a topic he has emphasized in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) for the past two years.

Although Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi had previously noted the lack of a regulatory framework for these proposed visa types, recent developments suggest progress towards their implementation.

The Department of Home Affairs reported: "A comprehensive report on the review of the work visa system was recently handed over to the President. The report makes recommendations with regards to the possibility of new visa categories that could enable economic growth."

South Africa's Visa Policy Transformation

South Africa is undergoing a significant shift in its visa policy. This change is driven by the country's initiative to stimulate tourism and attract vital skills to the region.

The Challenge: Backlog of Critical Skills Visas

A major hurdle in this mission has been the substantial backlog in processing critical skills visas. The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) in 2022 set a goal to process the majority of these visas within four weeks of application. Regrettably, it's projected that this was accomplished for only about 20% of the visa applications.

Government Response to Visa Backlog

In reaction to this, the government announced in March its plans to extend the validity of certain existing visas. This measure is an attempt to manage the over 62,700 backlogged applications while they work towards their resolution.

Future Goals for Visa Processing

The DHA has set ambitious goals for 2023 and 2024:

• Process 90% of critical skills visas in 2023
• Clear the entire backlog by 2024