Applying in South Africa

Step One - Discern If This is the Best Route

  • Pros- when applying in South Africa, it is a renewal, so you do not have to do police clearances for any country you've lived in for longer than six months (which is typically the longest process as a part of the application)

  • Cons - The risk here is that the process typically take 5-6x longer, and once your visa has expired, if you are waiting for your outcome, you cannot leave South Africa or you risk being blacklisted

If you are changing the status of your visa from a Tourist Visa, to a Visitors or Study Visa, you must apply in your home country. Only children can change the status of their visa to a Study Visa in South Africa

Other Frequently Asked Questions

If you decide to renew outside of South Africa - this is the same as applying for your first visa, to refer to that tab on the left

Step Two - Check Passport for Vital Details

Within your passport, confirm :

  1. Your passport expires in no less than 30 days after expiry of the intended date of departure from South Africa

    For example, if your Arrival Stamp says your visa expires on January 1 2023, and you are applying for a three year visa, then you will need your passport to stay valid until at least January 31 2026

    If your passport will expire, you can find information about the process for renewing your passport - which you should do prior to proceeding further, by clicking here

  2. At least TWO unused pages for entry / departure endorsements

    If you do not have sufficient unused pages, you will need to contact your embassy to see your options

  3. Your visa will not expire in less than 60 days - your visa renewal application needs to be submitted in person no less than 60 days prior to the expiry date of your Visa (which is stated on your Arrival Stamp). If you are applying within 60 days before your visa expires, you must include an explanation in your cover letter (which I will describe later)

Step Three - Request a Visa Letter from Oasis Admin

We can send the Invitation Letter no sooner than two weeks prior to your visa appointment (as there are additional identification documents we send along that often have to be re-certified so it doesn’t make sense to send them any earlier). So please send a request with sufficient time for us to be able to gather these documents.

You can send your request for a visa letter by emailing us this information (if you are applying along with your spouse, send their information as well) :

  • A copy of passport, current visa & arrival stamp associated with your current visa - if you will be applying on a new passport since your previous visa, send copy of old and new passport identification pages

  • The start & end dates of the visa you are applying for - start date the day after your visa expires (found on your Arrival Stamp), and you can apply for up to a three year visa

  • Your residential address - the address in South Africa where you stay

APPLYING FOR A VISA RENEWAL

Step Seven - Pay for Appointment

You must pay for your application before you are able to make your appointment. First double check the information on your application one more time to make sure everything is correct (it is possible to cancel your application and get a refund if you find a significant error to your application, but the process to get a refund can be tedious and slow)

  • You can do this by clicking the “Print” tab on your application and then “Payment”, you can pay by EFT, Debit, Credit or Pre-Payment at bank

  • You are given several additional options to add on, including

    • Premium Lounge — for an additional R500 per application, you can pay to process your application through the Premium Lounge, for many of the applicants this makes the process on the day go much smoother as your application takes priority, you’ll get better service and private waiting area- so this is often ideal for families

    • SMS Notifications — for an additional R20 per application, available for local SMS only, we also advise you to sign up for SMS notifications about the tracking of your application

Make sure to print a proof of payment for your application, here are some options :

  • You should be emailed proof of payment (this doesn’t always happen)

  • Print bank statement reflecting charge and highlight the amount (you can use black marker to cover account number and personal balance if your prefer)

  • Go to bank to request proof of payment

Step Nine - Get Documents Certified

To have paperwork certified you will need an original of the document, a photocopy and a pen. This is a free service offered, but some locations will only allow a limited number of documents be certified so you will may need to go to a second location

  • Make a photocopy of the identification page of your passport, current visa and arrival stamp, and any subsequent visas and arrival stamps. In addition, if you are married make a photocopy of your Marriage Certificate, spouses copy of passport and visa

    • Copies have to be legible and pictures on passport copies crisp and not too dark.

  • Take to post office or police station to be certified - they may ask for a pen to use for signing paperwork

  • If you are married to a South African citizen or resident, an affidavit as well as documentation proving cohabitation and the extent to which the related financial responsibilities are shared by the parties

Step Ten - Prepare Your Paperwork

Double check that you have stamps on : Medical & Radiological Report, Proof of Financial Means (where possible), Letter of Invitation

Make photos copies of everything you turn in, because you just never know what you’ll need to be prepared for (for example, we know of paperwork in transit getting hijacked), but ultimately, it helps you remember the whole process if applying again in 3 years.

  • My favorite method is to use the free Adobe Scan app, which uses your smart phone to make PDFs of all images you capture. Pro tip - I put these PDF’s on a flash drive so I’m prepared to reprint any documents as needed at VFS

Optional: Katie can be avaliable to review your documents before you submit them to double check for any possible errors

Double check the checklist of documents, just to be safe :

Step Twelve - Safely Store Your VFS Receipt

When you go to VFS, you will get a receipt of your visit. You cannot loose this receipt. They request it when you pick up your visa outcome and will not accept any other proof of payment.

I would recommend not only storing this receipt in a very safe place, but also making a copy and then getting a certified copy made at the police station as a backup.

Step Thirteen - Track Your Application

Regularly check the status of your application on the VFS account that you created - they don’t send notifications, so you alone are responsible to check if there have been updates sent.

It is recommended that you sign up for email / SMS notifications - which unfortunately are not a guarantee that you will receive information in a timely manner or at all - but its worth the R20 if you do.

While waiting for the outcome of your visa, only travel internationally if you have a valid visa to re-enter. If traveling while waiting for results it is also wise to have someone authorized to collect the results in case they come in while you are away. Information for having an authorized representative is here.

To understand what the various stages of tracking mean - refer to the FAQ tab to the left - but basically, when you see “Forwarded to the Pretoria OC”, you can make a plan to collect your outcome for at three days after you see this notification as that is typically when it will arrive by. Or you can wait until you see “Received at VFC” as that is when it is confirmed it will be at VFS, and then you can go to VFS. No appointment necessary.

Step Fourteen - Outcome Received!

The emails you get don’t tell you whether your application was accepted or not, so the journey to the VFS office to get the verdict is a nervous one. It helps to make an early appointment.

First, double check what you have received. There are often errors in dates or names, which you would rather get corrected in person rather than be held back at the border when you next travel.

If need be, you can apply for a an appeal.

Step Fifteen - Update Our Admin

Next update our Admin Team Member about the outcome of your application so we can update your information and be prepared to comply with government regulations.

Step Five - Fill Out Application

Pay special attention to the format of dates (for example, YR/MM/DD)

Make sure to that before you press the final “Submit” that you have double checked all information as it is not possible to edit your Application after you click “Submit” (If you find any errors after you press submit, you would have to start a new application - which is possible, just tedious)

We suggest printing the review page before you click “Submit” as its helpful to refer back to as needed

When you get the visa letter from us - it will be a first draft, so make sure to double check that all the information is correct

Step Four - Log Into VFS Website

Once you have received your visa letter back from us, you will be ready with the information you will need for your application

  • Choose either Google Chrome or Internet Explorer as your browser - update the browser as needed. Safari and Firefox can give you trouble when doing your payments and scheduling your appointments (you can use those later though to track your application).

  • If you continue to have issues with the website, as it often has glitches - try a new email / username, or clear the cache on your browser

  • As the website so finicky - the relevant paperwork, passports and visas should be readily on hand as the website will crash if you take too long to fill out your form. You will be required to log off and back in, so I find that it helps to have the website username & password saved to autofill, and to write cover letter first (templates here), so you can copy and paste relevant information into website, even if it crashes

Step Six - Gather Paperwork

When you finish your application, it will give you the option to download a Visa Renewal checklist. Its worthwhile to download and compare that list to the one below incase anything has been added by the South African government, below are also are a few more documents and details we’ve learned over the years.

While it should not take long to gather your documents, and its very possible to make your appointment prior to having all your paperwork finalized, yet we would advise you to first read over the checklist, consult the tips below, and then make a decision about how soon to book an appointment incase there may be any delays due to your unique circumstances

Step Eleven - Prepare for Your VFS Appointment

  • Bring a complete set of all supporting documents (an original and a copy for each document)

  • Have a copy of your appointment letter and passport on hand

  • As a general rule, every applicant has to submit the application in person (this includes babies and children). There are some exceptions: for more information please contact the Visa Application Centre

  • Only applicants, caregivers and those accompanying children under 18 years are permitted to enter the Visa Application Centre

  • On the day of your appointment plan to arrive 15 minutes early at the Visa Facilitation Centre

Address of VSF: 7th Floor, 2 Long Street, 2 on Long Building, Cape Town 8001

We've put together the map below for the easiest route to get to VFS and find parking.

Count on it to take just over an hour in total to go through the three steps of the appointment:

  1. Quality control: An agent checks your documents are in order

  2. Submission: Another agent officially submits your visitor permit extension application (this is also where you can pay the remains service fees, if you haven’t done that)

  3. Biometrics: They take your photo and fingerprints

When you arrive at the Visa Facilitation Centre you will collect a token. Wait until your token is called to make your application. Once the visa application process is completed you will be issued with an acknowledgment receipt. Keep your receipt safe as you will need this later to collect your documents - it is very bad if you loose it as the decision will be handed over on submitting this receipt.

Step Eight- Make Your Appointment

Keeping in mind that it is possible to gather all documents within a day or two depending how much time you have to go to appointments (see step six)

You can make your appointment by clicking the “Print” tab on your application and then “Schedule Appointment”

Make sure to print a copy of your appointment confirmation to include in your application, as well as this is a great time to print your VFS Application to submit

  • template for your cover letter can be found here

  • These reports will only remain valid for six months, so incase you gather everything early, is best to complete this process closer to the time of submission. For both reports make sure you get an official stamp by the doctors office. Pregnant Women: this report is not needed. If you are pregnant - ask your doctor to put it in the medical letter “this patient is pregnant, ___ weeks along at the time of this appointment, so is prohibited from any xrays. She has no signs of TB”

    For medical report -

    Tokai Medicross is an affordable option (around R320), you can book with Dr. Chouler online

    For the radiological report -

    Morton & Partners (at Tokai Medicross) - this is a popular option as you can get both your medical & radiological reports done on the same day if you plan your appointments accordingly - this appointment costs around R770

    UCT Academic Hospital (Observatory) is often the most affordable option, and you wait while the results come through. No appointment necessary, and times are 8-12, 2-3pm. Ph: 0214429204 if need further info. Take your passport with you and tell them its for a visa for Home Affairs. Last we heard, doing the report here is R520

  • They want to see that can can pay for your living expenses while in South Africa in the form of bank statements, salary advances, undertakings by the host(s) in South Africa, bursary, medical cover or cash available (including credit cards and travelers’ cheques). There are a couple of methods or items to include to prove your financial means:

    • They just want to see the totals. You don’t need to print all the transactions.

    • Take your bank statements from your bank accounts from the last three months (your local South African Bank account if you have one and your international bank account), copy them on to a Word doc (or similar app), black out account numbers (to protect your information), and print them as a PDF.

    • You can also ask your bank to write a letter of recommendation (Here’s an Example)

    They are typically looking for at least R5000 per month. If you are in a tight financial position, here are some ways to do this :

    • Ask other people to loan you money to add to your account for the sake of proof, as soon as you paper work was accepted, transferred the money back to those people. Have them do this in different amounts on different days, so that when you print your statements there is not just one big amount that comes in (as this could be a red flag for them)

    • Have one or some people that can be a ‘garant’ for you— so they show that they have proof of sufficient financial means and a letter that states that they support you financially for the total amount of living costs here or something like that. Often people ask family members, friends or their church

  • We send the Invitation Letter no sooner than two weeks prior to your visa appointment (as there are additional identification documents we send along that often have to be re-certified so it doesn’t make sense to send them any earlier). This means that its best to just make your VFS appointment first, and then contact us to request this letter, more information is below on step three

  • Download this app to take the photo for free and print at a local print shop

  • Are now done at VSF, so no need to get this done prior to your appointment. (the cost is R175)

  • This is optional though suggested, unless you are Brazilian - then you must have proof of health insurance

    While you can obtain health insurance in your home nation, there are also some options locally that are popular that you may want to consider: Discovery or Momentum

    Another option for missionaries is Talent Trust an international insurance company specifically designed for missionaries that gives a substantial discount (30%) to YWAMers - many of our missionaries use them

  • Valid return air flight ticket or proof of reservation - but only if your visa is a year or less. For more than one year, you can provide proof of your ticket to South Africa, but you don’t need a roundtrip ticket.

    All this being said, there is no reason to pay for tickets. The easiest way is to contact a travel agent and request a Proof of Reservation, which they can provide for you. Otherwise, here are a few options where for $15 you can get this paperwork.

    (We would recommend working with a travel agent when actually purchasing your tickets because they can get Humanitarian tickets for you, which typically allow for 3 bags per person, and discounted rates. Our go to travel agent is Wendell Knepp).

    You will want to say the date of departure is in at least a month after you submit your paperwork to the Embassy (and have this stated on your paperwork as well) - as this will add urgency to those processing the paperwork.

  • Only if you have traveled or intend to travel from or transition through a yellow fever endemic area (more info here)

  • If you are married, include a certified copy of your marriage certificate for submission (see step nine)

  • Are now done at VSF, so no need to get this done prior to your appointment. (the cost is R175)