Visa-free countries for South African citizens (2026)

Last reviewed 2026-08-25 · 59 visa-free · 33 visa on arrival · 33 eVisa

The South African passport is among the strongest on the continent, with broad access across southern Africa and a useful spread of destinations in Asia, the Caribbean and South America. Europe and North America still require visas, so knowing precisely where you can travel on the passport alone is worth real time and money. This guide sets out every one of those destinations, with the permitted stay and full requirements for each.

Visa-free

Visa on arrival

eVisa online

No advance visa

See the full South African passport hub (all destinations) →

What "visa-free" means for South African passport holders

Three categories let you travel with little or no paperwork. Visa-free means you are admitted on your passport alone. Visa on arrival means the visa is issued at the border, usually for a fee. An eVisa is applied for online before you fly. The tables below separate all three so you know exactly what to prepare.

Visa-free destinations (59)

No visa needed — enter on a valid South African passport, within the maximum stay shown.

Destination	Max stay	Details
🇦🇴 Angola	30 days	South African → Angola requirements →
🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda	180 days	South African → Antigua and Barbuda requirements →
🇦🇷 Argentina	90 days	South African → Argentina requirements →
🇧🇸 Bahamas	90 days	South African → Bahamas requirements →
🇧🇧 Barbados	180 days	South African → Barbados requirements →
🇧🇿 Belize	—	South African → Belize requirements →
🇧🇯 Benin	90 days	South African → Benin requirements →
🇧🇼 Botswana	90 days	South African → Botswana requirements →
🇧🇷 Brazil	90 days	South African → Brazil requirements →
🇨🇱 Chile	90 days	South African → Chile requirements →
🇨🇷 Costa Rica	180 days	South African → Costa Rica requirements →
🇩🇲 Dominica	180 days	South African → Dominica requirements →
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	—	South African → Dominican Republic requirements →
🇪🇨 Ecuador	90 days	South African → Ecuador requirements →
🇸🇻 El Salvador	180 days	South African → El Salvador requirements →
🇸🇿 Eswatini	30 days	South African → Eswatini requirements →
🇫🇯 Fiji	120 days	South African → Fiji requirements →
🇬🇦 Gabon	30 days	South African → Gabon requirements →
🇬🇲 Gambia	90 days	South African → Gambia requirements →
🇬🇪 Georgia	360 days	South African → Georgia requirements →
🇬🇭 Ghana	90 days	South African → Ghana requirements →
🇬🇩 Grenada	90 days	South African → Grenada requirements →
🇬🇹 Guatemala	90 days	South African → Guatemala requirements →
🇬🇾 Guyana	30 days	South African → Guyana requirements →
🇭🇹 Haiti	90 days	South African → Haiti requirements →
🇭🇳 Honduras	90 days	South African → Honduras requirements →
🇮🇱 Israel	90 days	South African → Israel requirements →
🇯🇲 Jamaica	—	South African → Jamaica requirements →
🇰🇪 Kenya	90 days	South African → Kenya requirements →
🇰🇮 Kiribati	90 days	South African → Kiribati requirements →
🇱🇸 Lesotho	—	South African → Lesotho requirements →
🇲🇼 Malawi	90 days	South African → Malawi requirements →
🇲🇾 Malaysia	90 days	South African → Malaysia requirements →
🇲🇺 Mauritius	90 days	South African → Mauritius requirements →
🇫🇲 Micronesia	30 days	South African → Micronesia requirements →
🇲🇿 Mozambique	—	South African → Mozambique requirements →
🇳🇦 Namibia	90 days	South African → Namibia requirements →
🇳🇮 Nicaragua	90 days	South African → Nicaragua requirements →
🇵🇸 Palestine	—	South African → Palestine requirements →
🇵🇦 Panama	90 days	South African → Panama requirements →
🇵🇾 Paraguay	90 days	South African → Paraguay requirements →
🇵🇪 Peru	180 days	South African → Peru requirements →
🇵🇭 Philippines	30 days	South African → Philippines requirements →
🇷🇺 Russia	90 days	South African → Russia requirements →
🇷🇼 Rwanda	30 days	South African → Rwanda requirements →
🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis	90 days	South African → Saint Kitts and Nevis requirements →
🇱🇨 Saint Lucia	42 days	South African → Saint Lucia requirements →
🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	90 days	South African → Saint Vincent and the Grenadines requirements →
🇸🇨 Seychelles	90 days	South African → Seychelles requirements →
🇸🇬 Singapore	30 days	South African → Singapore requirements →
🇹🇿 Tanzania	90 days	South African → Tanzania requirements →
🇹🇭 Thailand	60 days	South African → Thailand requirements →
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	90 days	South African → Trinidad and Tobago requirements →
🇹🇳 Tunisia	90 days	South African → Tunisia requirements →
🇺🇾 Uruguay	90 days	South African → Uruguay requirements →
🇻🇺 Vanuatu	120 days	South African → Vanuatu requirements →
🇻🇪 Venezuela	90 days	South African → Venezuela requirements →
🇿🇲 Zambia	90 days	South African → Zambia requirements →
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	90 days	South African → Zimbabwe requirements →

Visa on arrival (33)

A visa is issued at the airport or border — carry the fee, a return ticket and accommodation details.

Destination	Max stay	Details
🇦🇲 Armenia	—	South African → Armenia requirements →
🇧🇴 Bolivia	—	South African → Bolivia requirements →
🇧🇮 Burundi	—	South African → Burundi requirements →
🇨🇻 Cabo Verde	—	South African → Cabo Verde requirements →
🇰🇭 Cambodia	—	South African → Cambodia requirements →
🇰🇲 Comoros	—	South African → Comoros requirements →
🇩🇯 Djibouti	—	South African → Djibouti requirements →
🇪🇬 Egypt	—	South African → Egypt requirements →
🇪🇹 Ethiopia	—	South African → Ethiopia requirements →
🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	—	South African → Guinea-Bissau requirements →
🇮🇩 Indonesia	—	South African → Indonesia requirements →
🇮🇷 Iran	—	South African → Iran requirements →
🇯🇴 Jordan	—	South African → Jordan requirements →
🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan	—	South African → Kyrgyzstan requirements →
🇱🇦 Laos	—	South African → Laos requirements →
🇲🇬 Madagascar	—	South African → Madagascar requirements →
🇲🇻 Maldives	—	South African → Maldives requirements →
🇲🇭 Marshall Islands	—	South African → Marshall Islands requirements →
🇲🇷 Mauritania	—	South African → Mauritania requirements →
🇳🇵 Nepal	—	South African → Nepal requirements →
🇳🇬 Nigeria	—	South African → Nigeria requirements →
🇴🇲 Oman	—	South African → Oman requirements →
🇵🇼 Palau	—	South African → Palau requirements →
🇶🇦 Qatar	—	South African → Qatar requirements →
🇼🇸 Samoa	—	South African → Samoa requirements →
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	—	South African → Saudi Arabia requirements →
🇸🇳 Senegal	—	South African → Senegal requirements →
🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	—	South African → Sierra Leone requirements →
🇸🇴 Somalia	—	South African → Somalia requirements →
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	—	South African → Sri Lanka requirements →
🇹🇯 Tajikistan	—	South African → Tajikistan requirements →
🇹🇱 Timor-Leste	—	South African → Timor-Leste requirements →
🇹🇻 Tuvalu	—	South African → Tuvalu requirements →

eVisa / online authorisation (33)

Apply and pay online before you travel; you cannot get these at the airport.

Destination	Max stay	Details
🇦🇱 Albania	—	South African → Albania requirements →
🇦🇺 Australia	—	South African → Australia requirements →
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	—	South African → Azerbaijan requirements →
🇧🇭 Bahrain	—	South African → Bahrain requirements →
🇧🇹 Bhutan	—	South African → Bhutan requirements →
🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	—	South African → Burkina Faso requirements →
🇨🇲 Cameroon	—	South African → Cameroon requirements →
🇨🇴 Colombia	—	South African → Colombia requirements →
🇨🇺 Cuba	—	South African → Cuba requirements →
🇨🇩 DR Congo	—	South African → DR Congo requirements →
🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea	—	South African → Equatorial Guinea requirements →
🇬🇳 Guinea	—	South African → Guinea requirements →
🇮🇳 India	—	South African → India requirements →
🇮🇶 Iraq	—	South African → Iraq requirements →
🇨🇮 Ivory Coast	—	South African → Ivory Coast requirements →
🇯🇵 Japan	—	South African → Japan requirements →
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	—	South African → Kazakhstan requirements →
🇱🇾 Libya	—	South African → Libya requirements →
🇲🇩 Moldova	—	South African → Moldova requirements →
🇲🇳 Mongolia	—	South African → Mongolia requirements →
🇲🇲 Myanmar	—	South African → Myanmar requirements →
🇵🇰 Pakistan	—	South African → Pakistan requirements →
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	—	South African → Papua New Guinea requirements →
🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe	—	South African → Sao Tome and Principe requirements →
🇰🇷 South Korea	—	South African → South Korea requirements →
🇸🇸 South Sudan	—	South African → South Sudan requirements →
🇸🇷 Suriname	—	South African → Suriname requirements →
🇸🇾 Syria	—	South African → Syria requirements →
🇹🇬 Togo	—	South African → Togo requirements →
🇹🇷 Turkey	—	South African → Turkey requirements →
🇦🇪 UAE	—	South African → UAE requirements →
🇺🇬 Uganda	—	South African → Uganda requirements →
🇻🇳 Vietnam	—	South African → Vietnam requirements →

Practical tips before you travel

Your easiest travel is in Africa: 32 destinations there admit South African passport holders visa-free or on arrival — usually the cheapest and least paperwork-heavy trips to plan.
Europe's Schengen Area requires a full visa for South African passport holders — ETIAS does not apply to you. Apply at the consulate of your main destination (or first entry point), and start 4–6 weeks ahead, as appointment slots are the usual bottleneck.
33 destinations issue South African travellers an eVisa or online authorisation. These cannot be obtained at the airport — apply before you book non-refundable travel, and use only the official government portal, never a paid "visa service" lookalike.
For the 33 visa-on-arrival destinations, carry the exact fee in clean US dollars plus a printed return ticket and hotel booking — arrival counters frequently decline cards and ask for onward proof.
Visa-free never means unlimited: each country sets its own maximum stay, and overstaying risks fines, deportation or an entry ban. Check the permitted stay in the tables above for your exact destination.
Keep at least six months' passport validity beyond your travel dates with two blank pages, and re-confirm the rule on the destination's official immigration site before booking — visa policy changes often.

How this list is compiled

Requirements are compiled from publicly available government and IATA Timatic-style sources and reviewed periodically (last reviewed 2026-08-25). We show what is generally applicable to ordinary tourist passports; diplomatic, official and refugee travel documents can differ. Because visa policy changes frequently, treat this as a starting point and confirm with the destination's official immigration authority before booking. See our data methodology for details.

Frequently asked questions

How many countries can South African citizens visit visa-free?

South African passport holders can enter 59 countries and territories visa-free and a further 33 on a visa on arrival — 92 destinations in total with no visa arranged in advance. Another 33 are reachable with an online eVisa.

What is the difference between visa-free and visa on arrival for South African travellers?

Visa-free means you are admitted on your passport alone. Visa on arrival means a visa is issued to you at the airport or border, usually for a fee — you still get it on the day, but you should carry the fee, a return ticket and a hotel booking.

Do South African citizens need proof of funds for visa-free travel?

Often, yes. Even where no visa is required, border officers may ask South African travellers for evidence of onward travel and sufficient funds. Carry a printed itinerary and recent bank statements to be safe.

Is this list official?

No. isvisarequired.com compiles this from public government and IATA sources, last reviewed 2026-08-25. Rules change often — always confirm with the destination's official immigration authority before booking.

General guidance only — not an official government source. Always verify current requirements with the destination's embassy or official immigration website before you travel.