DURBAN, 10 July 2019 – South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs has added seven countries to the visa waiver list for travel to South Africa. Citizens of Ghana, Sao Tome and Principe, New Zealand, Cuba, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia no longer require visas to visit South Africa.
The announcement was made by the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, this afternoon during the Department of Home Affairs Budget Vote speech.
Commenting on the announcement, South African Tourism (SA Tourism) Acting CEO, Sthembiso Dlamini said; “This is amazing news and could not have come at a better time for the tourism industry. As we look to achieve our 5-in-5 goals which are to increase international tourist arrivals by 4 million and domestic holiday trips by 1 million, the visa waivers will go a long way to assisting the increase of tourist arrivals into South Africa.”
“The visa waivers to countries in all of our key markets will ensure that we stimulate growth in the industry that is in line with the mandate issued to us by President Cyril Ramaphosa,” added Dlamini.
The Department of Home affairs also committed to employing additional staff to key markets where there is high demand for visas thus decreasing the visa waiting time.
“Home Affairs offices that process visas for India, China and Nigeria will receive additional human resources is a further indication and commitment by the government to ensure that the tourism industry is prioritized,” concluded Dlamini.
