The rollout of South Africa’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) is gaining momentum. As the digital system is steadily being extended to travellers from more countries, it holds promise for the future digital processing of all visa categories through a single, integrated system. 

Since its official launch on 12 August 2026, when the ETA was initially made available to tourists from China, India, Mexico and Indonesia, access has expanded to travellers from 45 countries. These include the Netherlands, Singapore, Switzerland, Japan, Israel, the Philippines, Germany, France and Côte d’Ivoire to name a few.

During the launch, Minister of Home Affairs Dr Leon Schreiber, said the ETA represents a quantum leap forward for South Africa’s immigration system, transforming the way international travellers enter the country. This will unlock economic growth through tourism, investment and legitimate travel, while also addressing visa fraud and illegal immigration.

The ETA is laying the foundation to significantly reduce immigration queues. By using biometrics and machine learning, the face of the traveller becomes the key that determines whether they may enter, rather than physical documents that can be manipulated, the Minister said.

Keri Culver, Senior Immigration Consultant at Xpatweb, says the move towards digital processing is an important part of modernising South Africa’s immigration system and improving service delivery. 

“The expansion of the ETA is a welcome step in the Department of Home Affairs’ broader digital transformation journey, particularly as it creates the potential for a more streamlined process for travellers and, over time, a more integrated approach across visa categories. This is important for economic growth. The priority now is to ensure full integration with the systems of other government entities involved in border control and immigration management,” she notes.

Who Is It For?

Eligible travellers can apply online from anywhere in the world without having to visit a South African mission or visa processing centre prior to travelling. This system is intended to make processing faster and more predictable while improving the overall travel experience. 

The ETA is currently focused on tourist travel, designed primarily for short-stay visitors who require authorisation to enter South Africa. It is also available on a voluntary basis to visa exempt travellers who want to use the faster ETA queue upon arrival in South Africa, or who want to easily extend their stay by up to 90 days.

Legitimate travellers who enter South Africa for up to 90 days, can apply through the ETA to extend their stay for up to a further 90 days, as stipulated by the Immigration Act. This is expected to significantly boost tourism revenues.

The ETA was first tested in November 2025 ahead of South Africa’s G20 Leaders’ Summit, initially covering travellers from China, India, Indonesia and Mexico, which remain important high-volume markets. At the time of the official launch in August 2026, the ETA had processed more than 216 000 applications and identified about 6 000 applications as potentially fraudulent, which were subsequently rejected.

As envisioned, Government is expanding the system to additional countries, while digital processing is expected, over time, to extend beyond visitor authorisations to include all visa categories.

Key Features of the ETA

The ETA application is completed digitally. Travellers create a profile online, verify their cell phone number and email address using one-time passwords, scan their passport and upload a selfie.

Biometric technology compares their passport photo to their facial photograph, confirming that it is the same person, while automated checks assess the authenticity of the travel document faster than humanly possible. 

Approved applicants will receive their ETA within 24 hours, storing it directly in the digital wallet on their smart phone.

Once an approved traveller arrives at the immigration counter, biometric verification will confirm whether the entrant is the same person who received authorisation to travel to South Africa.

As part of the rollout, the Border Management Authority, working with the South African Revenue Service, has also upgraded the Electronic Movement Control System at international airports to create EMCS 2.0, incorporating biometric capabilities.

The ETA can also help Home Affairs detect overstayers in real-time. Where a traveller’s face has not been recorded as leaving within the permitted period, the department can issue a warning that the person is at risk of overstaying and prosecution.

Toward a Sophisticated, Efficient and Secure Immigration System

During the official launch, the Minister noted that the ETA will progressively become compulsory for short-stay visits from countries that require port-of-entry visas to South Africa.

He emphasised that the system is not designed to be just a digital visa for tourists and short visits. The aim is to turn it into the single-entry point and central platform for an end-to-end digital immigration system, where all visa categories are processed through biometric and machine learning technology.

This means eventually expanding the platform to also process more complex visa categories, including study visas, spousal visas, and work visas.

“By the time this work is complete, South Africa will have one of the most sophisticated, efficient and secure digital visa and entry/exit systems anywhere in the world.” 

For travellers, the change represents a shift from a paper-based and lengthy in-person visa processes towards applying from a smartphone or computer in the comfort of their homes. For the department it is the flagship reform for its vision to modernise and digitally transform South Africa’s visa and immigration system.

Written by Xpatweb