Visa Fees & Processing Times - South Africa

VISA APPLICATION FEES

Temporary Residence Visa Fees

Fees are prescribed in the Immigration Regulations and published in the Government Gazette. These are approximate and should be verified against the latest gazette notice.

Visa Category	Application Fee (ZAR)	Notes
Visitor's Visa	~R1,600	Visa-exempt nationals: free for visa-free period
Study Visa	~R1,600
Treaty Visa	~R1,600
Business Visa	~R1,520	DTIC recommendation: separate process
Crew Visa	~R1,520
Medical Treatment Visa	~R1,600
Relative's Visa	~R1,520
General Work Visa	~R1,520
Critical Skills Work Visa	~R1,520
Intra-Company Transfer	~R1,520
Corporate Visa (employer)	~R1,520	Per block allocation
Retired Person's Visa	~R1,520
Exchange Visa	~R1,520
Remote Worker Visa	TBC	New category, fees being established

Permanent Residence Fees

Category	Application Fee (ZAR)	Notes
Section 26(a) - Five years	~R1,520
Section 26(b) - Spouse	~R1,520
Section 27(a) - Employment	~R1,520
Section 27(b) - Extraordinary skills	~R1,520
Section 27(c) - Business	~R1,520	Plus R5M investment
Section 27(e) - Retired	~R1,520
Section 27(f) - Financially independent	~R120,000	Special prescribed fee
Section 27(g) - Relative	~R1,520

Other Fees

Service	Fee (ZAR)	Notes
Visa extension (within SA)	~R1,520
Change of status	~R1,520
Appeal against refusal	~R1,520
Waiver application	Varies
Certification of documents	Varies

Important Notes:

• All fees are inclusive of VAT
• Fees must be paid in South African Rand
• Fees are non-refundable once application is submitted
• Fees are reviewed and updated periodically (check latest gazette)
• VFS Global charges additional service fees on top of DHA fees

VFS Global Service Fees

Service	Fee (ZAR)	Notes
Standard application processing	~R1,350-R1,550	Included in pre-payment
Premium Lounge	~R500+	Optional
Courier delivery	~R250+	Optional
SMS updates	~R100+	Optional
Form filling assistance	~R300+	Optional
Photo service	~R100+	Optional

Minimum pre-payment: R1,550 required to book VFS appointment

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SAQA EVALUATION FEES

Evaluation Type	Fee (ZAR)	Notes
Standard evaluation	~R1,200	For single qualification
Additional qualification	~R600	Each additional
Verification	~R400	Verification of SA qualification

Processing time: 3-6 months (often longer due to backlogs)

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PROFESSIONAL BODY REGISTRATION FEES

Vary significantly by profession:

Professional Body	Registration Fee Range (ZAR)	Notes
ECSA (Engineering)	R2,000-R10,000+	Depends on category
HPCSA (Health)	R1,000-R5,000+	Depends on profession
SANC (Nursing)	R500-R2,000
SAPC (Pharmacy)	R1,000-R3,000
SACAP (Architecture)	R2,000-R8,000
SAICA (Accounting)	R2,000-R5,000
SACNASP (Science)	R1,000-R3,000

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PROCESSING TIMES

Temporary Visa Processing Times

Visa Category	Official Target	Typical Actual	Best Case	Worst Case
Visitor's Visa	5-15 days	5-20 days	3 days	30 days
Study Visa	4-8 weeks	4-12 weeks	3 weeks	16 weeks
General Work Visa	4-8 weeks	8-20 weeks	6 weeks	6+ months
Critical Skills Visa	4-8 weeks	8-16 weeks	4 weeks	6+ months
Intra-Company Transfer	4-8 weeks	6-16 weeks	4 weeks	5 months
Business Visa	8-12 weeks	12-24 weeks	8 weeks	12+ months
Relative's Visa	4-8 weeks	8-16 weeks	4 weeks	6 months
Retired Person's Visa	4-8 weeks	8-16 weeks	4 weeks	6 months
Remote Worker Visa	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC

Permanent Residence Processing Times

Category	Official Target	Typical Actual
Section 26(a) - Five years	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 26(b) - Spouse	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(a) - Employment	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(b) - Extraordinary	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(c) - Business	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(e) - Retired	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(f) - Financial	8-12 months	12-24+ months
Section 27(g) - Relative	8-12 months	12-24+ months

Other Processing Times

Process	Typical Time
SAQA evaluation	3-6 months
Professional body registration	3-6 months
DTIC recommendation (Business Visa)	~45 working days
Visa extension (within SA)	4-12 weeks
Change of status	4-12 weeks
Appeal	6-12+ months
Citizenship (naturalization)	12-24+ months

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FACTORS AFFECTING PROCESSING TIMES

Delays are Common Due To:

• DHA capacity constraints: Insufficient adjudication staff
• Backlogs: Accumulated applications from previous periods
• COVID-19 aftermath: Still clearing pandemic-era backlogs
• System transitions: Migration to new IT systems
• Holiday periods: December-January and Easter periods slower
• Missing documents: Incomplete applications returned for resubmission
• SAQA delays: Qualification evaluations taking longer than expected
• Professional body delays: Registration processes slow
• Inter-departmental queries: DHA waiting for other departments

Tips for Faster Processing

1. Submit complete documentation (most common cause of delays is missing docs)
2. Use a registered immigration practitioner
3. Apply well in advance of when the visa is needed
4. Ensure SAQA evaluation is submitted early
5. Begin professional body registration as early as possible
6. Respond promptly to any DHA queries
7. Track application progress through VFS
8. Consider premium VFS services for courier delivery
9. Keep copies of everything submitted

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DTIC RECOMMENDATION TIMELINE (Business Visa)

Step	Timeline
Submit online via VRS	Day 0
DTIC review and assessment	~45 working days
Recommendation letter issued	Upon approval
Submit visa application at VFS	After receiving DTIC letter
DHA processing	12-24 weeks
Total estimated time	4-9 months

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FINANCIAL THRESHOLDS SUMMARY

Requirement	Amount (ZAR)
Remote Worker Visa (annual income)	R1,000,000
General Work Visa (high salary points)	>R976,194/year
General Work Visa (medium salary points)	R650,796-R976,194/year
Business Visa (capital investment)	R5,000,000
Retired Person's Visa (monthly income)	R37,000/month
PR - Financial Independence (net worth)	R12,000,000
PR - Financial Independence (fee)	R120,000
Relative's Visa (sponsor income)	R8,500/month per person