Visa regulations: DHA announcement too little, too late

5 February 2015

Today’s announcement by the Departments of Home Affairs (DHA) that the it will be relaxing some of the job-killing visa regulations it introduced last year does not go far enough to restore South Africa as a tourist friendly destination.

Instead of announcing an E-visa system in line with the recommendations by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the DHA merely noted that it would be considering the idea of issuing visas on arrival in the coming months. 

Meanwhile the concession by the DHA to do away with the unabridged birth certificate requirement for minors whose passports contain the full details of both parents will have no benefit to those who do not possess these updated passports.

The fact is that today’s announcement is too little, too late. While the weakened Rand has helped to offset some of the damage caused by these regulations, countless jobs have already been lost.

South Africa must follow these example set by countries with E-visa systems where they have proven to increase border security while decreasing visa turnaround time. This is what is required to unlock the full potential of the tourist market.

Tourism is a vitally important sector in our economy, contributing 9% to GDP, and creating thousands of jobs in skilled and unskilled positions. In fact, 1 job is created for every 12 tourists that visit South Africa.

We must leverage South Africa’s potential as a tourism destination as far as possible, and do away with all onerous visa regulations that impede the sector’s growth.

The DA will continue to push for the introduction of a modern, streamlined E-visa system in order to unlock the job creation potential that tourism holds.

Statement issued by James Vos MP, DA Shadow Minister of Tourism, 6 February 2016