South Africa: Draft Immigration Fee Amendments Published for Public Comment

The situation 

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has published draft amendments to the regulations on fees under the Immigration Act for public comment. Interested members of the public may submit comments on the draft regulations through the channels published in the government gazette by August 11, 2026. 

A closer look 

The proposed amendments include the following: 

• • • New ETA processing fee proposed. The draft regulations propose a ZAR 500 electronic processing fee for ETA applications submitted and processed online. Currently, the ETA platform has operated without charging an application processing fee because online payment functionality was not previously available. 
    • Voluntary ETA proposed for visa-exempt nationals. Under the draft regulations, visa-exempt nationals would be able to voluntarily obtain an ETA by paying a proposed ZAR 500 processing fee. Currently, visa-exempt nationals are not required to obtain an ETA before travelling to South Africa. However, according to the draft regulations, the DHA intends to implement a voluntary approach to encourage an early uptake of the ETA platform, with the expectation that visa-exempt nationals will be incorporated into the system in the future, while retaining their visa-free entry. 
    • Electronic processing fee proposed for online visa and permit applications in addition to existing visa fees. The draft regulations retain the current prescribed visa fees for visitor, work, business, corporate and permanent residence applications. However, where applications are submitted and processed online, applicants would also pay the proposed ZAR 500 electronic processing fee, where applicable, in addition to the existing prescribed visa fees. 

Impact 

The proposed amendments do not currently change South Africa's immigration fees or application requirements. However, if adopted, they would introduce a new fee framework for online visa and permit applications and support the expanded rollout of the ETA platform.  

According to the DHA, transitioning visa processing from the current outsourced service provider to an in-house digital platform is expected to reduce overall application costs for many applicants while providing a more streamlined online application process. 

Background 

The DHA introduced the ETA platform in October 2025 as part of a phased rollout to digitize and streamline South Africa's visa application process. The ETA initially applied to select nationals and is expected to expand to all visa-required nationals entering South Africa for business and tourism purposes. However, the ETA has operated without a processing fee because the platform did not initially include an integrated online payment capability. As a result, the draft regulations now propose the introduction of a processing fee to support the operation and long-term sustainability of the platform. 

Looking ahead 

The DHA will consider public comments received on the draft regulations before issuing the final amendments to the regulations on fees under the Immigration Act. If adopted, the amendments are proposed to come into effect on August 17, 2026. Fragomen will continue to monitor developments and provide updates as they become available. 

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.