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South Africa is easing visa restrictions, and China and India will benefit most
By Lynsey Chutel in Johannesburg36 minutes ago
China and India are the big winners in South Africa’s newly relaxed rules on visas. Starting next month, most business travelers will be issued five-year, multiple-entry visas on arrival; business travelers from the BRICScountries, including China and India, could be granted 10-year, multiple-entry visas, without having to apply in person.
While Western nations are increasingly closing their borders, Africa’s most advanced economy recognizes that open borders mean an open economy. South Africa’s department of Home Affairs announced the eased restrictions on visas on Tuesday (Sept. 25), as part of president Cyril Ramaphosa’s economic stimulus and recovery plan announced on Sept. 21. The plan is aimed at reinvigorating the country’s floundering economy, by making tourism, business, and special-skills visas easier to obtain.
South Africa also eased its visa regulations for traveling with children, rolling back its strict requirement that parents must produce an unabridged birth certificate. All restrictions fall away for international visitors, while South Africans still will be required to prove parental consent.
The country’s home affairs department instituted strict rules on traveling with minors in 2014, saying it was a response to child trafficking and local regulation on parental rights. Yet, it is believed the rules cost South Africa millions of dollars—the exact losses are still being calculated, but it’s estimated to be approximately 500 million rand ($34.9 million)—even as the rules were partially eased earlier this year.
There were no material changes announced for rules applying specifically to other African travelers. Angola already has visa-free travel as of last December, and 15 of the 16 countries in the Southern African Development Community also do not need visas. However, the Home Affairs department said it is looking at aligning South Africa’s laws with the African Union’s free movement agenda, and the country is in negotiations to finalize visa-waiver agreements with Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Sao Tome & Principe, Tunisia, the Saharawi-Arab Democratic Republic, and Ghana.
More on link South Africa is easing visa restrictions for Chinese and Indian visitors, but not Africans
Na zile KQ flights mbili-mbili za kwenda SA lakini bado SA wameweka mguu kausha, mliwakosea nini ?
By Lynsey Chutel in Johannesburg36 minutes ago
China and India are the big winners in South Africa’s newly relaxed rules on visas. Starting next month, most business travelers will be issued five-year, multiple-entry visas on arrival; business travelers from the BRICScountries, including China and India, could be granted 10-year, multiple-entry visas, without having to apply in person.
While Western nations are increasingly closing their borders, Africa’s most advanced economy recognizes that open borders mean an open economy. South Africa’s department of Home Affairs announced the eased restrictions on visas on Tuesday (Sept. 25), as part of president Cyril Ramaphosa’s economic stimulus and recovery plan announced on Sept. 21. The plan is aimed at reinvigorating the country’s floundering economy, by making tourism, business, and special-skills visas easier to obtain.
South Africa also eased its visa regulations for traveling with children, rolling back its strict requirement that parents must produce an unabridged birth certificate. All restrictions fall away for international visitors, while South Africans still will be required to prove parental consent.
The country’s home affairs department instituted strict rules on traveling with minors in 2014, saying it was a response to child trafficking and local regulation on parental rights. Yet, it is believed the rules cost South Africa millions of dollars—the exact losses are still being calculated, but it’s estimated to be approximately 500 million rand ($34.9 million)—even as the rules were partially eased earlier this year.
There were no material changes announced for rules applying specifically to other African travelers. Angola already has visa-free travel as of last December, and 15 of the 16 countries in the Southern African Development Community also do not need visas. However, the Home Affairs department said it is looking at aligning South Africa’s laws with the African Union’s free movement agenda, and the country is in negotiations to finalize visa-waiver agreements with Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Sao Tome & Principe, Tunisia, the Saharawi-Arab Democratic Republic, and Ghana.
More on link South Africa is easing visa restrictions for Chinese and Indian visitors, but not Africans
Na zile KQ flights mbili-mbili za kwenda SA lakini bado SA wameweka mguu kausha, mliwakosea nini ?