iday42k:
Is anybody having update on south africa visa application. I applied for study visa about three months now but no news at all. Tried reaching the consulate but to no avail. Thanks

It’s within 12-18 weeks before you get an outcome. There are strict measures now in visa applications plus shortage of staffs

Tryhard:


It’s within 12-18 weeks before you get an outcome. There are strict measures now in visa applications

Its better you say 1 year, because I have someone who had applied 8 months ago and nothing till now.

shigo04:



Its better you say 1 year, because I have someone who had applied 8 months ago and nothing till now.

Wow. Sometimes what causes these delay is maybe you didn’t give them sufficient information or somethings were not just right with the application. He/she should contact VFS or SA consulate for assistance. And it’s advisable to apply for SA visa at least 6 Months earlier before the day of departure and all supporting document must be clear, legible and authentic.

Tryhard:


Wow. Sometimes what causes these delay is maybe you didn’t give them sufficient information or somethings were not just right with the application. He/she should contact VFS or SA consulate for assistance. And it’s advisable to apply for SA visa at least 6 Months earlier before the day of departure and all supporting document must be clear, legible and authentic.

The fellow contacted SA embassy in Abuja and fortunately the high commissioner responded to his mail. He said, the type of visa he applied for is adjudicated at the home affair South Africa, and as a mission in Nigeria, they await the outcome of the application before they can get back to the fellow.

Pls did anyone here who applied for eVisa have challenge with document uploaded?
I'm using PDF format and it keeps saying upload failed. It does show as uploaded when I refresh the page. But once I log off and log back in, everything vanishes.
Any clues or guidance will be highly appreciated so I can proceed to make payment without any fears.
Thank you.

shigo04:


The fellow contacted SA embassy in Abuja and fortunately the high commissioner responded to his mail. He said, the type of visa he applied for is adjudicated at the home affair South Africa, and as a mission in Nigeria, they await the outcome of the application before they can get back to the fellow.

Is it a study visa ?

Tryhard:


Is it a study visa ?

He applied for a research visitor.

Maz8:
Long Term Visa applicants may find the below post shared from BusinessTech website useful: https://businesstech.co.za/news/government/604114/south-africas-new-visa-system-is-already-causing-headaches/amp/

POST RESHARED FROM BUSINESSTECH WEBSITE

South Africa’s new visa system is already causing headaches

At the start of June, Home Affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi announced a complete overhaul of South Africa’s immigration system. The first area of change is long-term visa applications by foreign nationals wishing to stay for over three months in South Africa.

However, these changes have already caused a backlog in processing visa applications, say legal experts at Webber Wentzel.

“Visa submissions by this group previously went through Visa and Permit Facilitation Centres (VFS Centres) or through South African Missions. Then, one of the two centres would process applications and send the outcomes directly to the foreign national.

“Going forward, these visa applications will be processed through a centralised adjudication system to achieve consistency and uniformity in the visa adjudication process.”

The new system effectively works as follows:

- A foreign national will still apply through the VFS Centre or South African Mission, but these two institutions will scan and email the application to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) office, headquartered in Pretoria.

- The department’s adjudicating team will receive the application and verify the documents.
A recommendation will then be drawn up, and the application, along with the recommendation will be sent by the department to the director for quality assurance.

- The director must confirm that compliance has been met, they make a further recommendation as to whether to approve or reject the application.

- The chief director or the director-general receives the recommendation and makes the final decision to approve or reject the application.

- After this decision is made, the application is sent back to the adjudicating team to capture the decision and upload what is known as the manual route cover, which includes the decision, onto the system.

- The outcome is thereafter printed and routed back to the director-general to sign off.

- The final document is captured on the Movement Control System (MCS) which is the system that facilitates the entry and exit into a country by a foreign national. It is a digital system that records entries and exits and is also used to view a person’s complete travel history, records, and corresponding documents.

- The outcome is finally dispatched to the original High Commission or VFS Centre.

Problems

Webber Wentzel noted that the department cannot confirm how long processing times will take in the new system, however, given challenges such as staff shortages and rotational work arrangements, frequent system failures, communication issues, and existing backlogs, an initial delay in processing times may result from the change.

“On 27 June 2022, the DHA introduced temporary measures to address the impact that the increased backlog in processing visa applications has on foreign nationals. The measures provide a blanket temporary extension of foreign nationals’ current visa status until 30 September 2022 for those awaiting visa application outcomes.

“Foreign nationals who wish to abandon the process and leave the country instead may also do so until 30 September 2022. Following the Minister’s announcement on 8 June 2022 in respect of the immigration system, it is likely that further official changes will be revealed in the coming weeks.”

Commentary by Nivaani Moodley (partner) Bianca Rutherfoord-Jones (immigration consultant) and Diyajal Ramrajh (candidate attorney) at Webber Wentzel.

They should start doing like Canda. Only ask for my passport when decision is ready and if it favours me. Shikena

Nigeria’s Consul General Speaks on Challenges With South African Visa

Watch here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKNQEJC64-Q

Princessayot:
Please did you eventually get a response to this? Has the status changed now?

Yes the status has changed.

Please could you ask for the high commissioners email and post here

shigo04:


The fellow contacted SA embassy in Abuja and fortunately the high commissioner responded to his mail. He said, the type of visa he applied for is adjudicated at the home affair South Africa, and as a mission in Nigeria, they await the outcome of the application before they can get back to the fellow.

Please how long does the processing take now . Is it better ? I m planning to apply for a visiting visa next week .

MrPeterson:
Please how long does the processing take now . Is it better ? I m planning to apply for a visiting visa next week .

12weeks to 18weeks if all things go well

Pls I need guidance on filling the South African e-Visa form. I am have completed the first stage but unable to proceed to the second stage where I need to upload my documents. If I click save and continue, it will just load for a while and take me back to the same page. Kindly provide advice/guidance as I am to get the visa in time to enable me to attend a fully sponsored spring school course. Thank you.

Have you applied for one this year and got it within the time you put up there? If not please stop posting that up.
A lot of have applied for way more than that time and are still waiting for response even for tourist visa that doesn't need to go to DHA in Pretoria.

Tryhard:


12weeks to 18weeks if all things go well

Lol

hmgkope:
Have you applied for one this year and got it within the time you put up there? If not please stop posting that up.
A lot of have applied for way more than that time and are still waiting for response even for tourist visa that doesn't need to go to DHA in Pretoria.

It is finished. I can’t risk my passport there with them at this critical time we found our self .

Pls I need guidance on filling the South African e-Visa form. I am have completed the first stage but unable to proceed to the second stage where I need to upload my documents. If I click save and continue, it will just load for a while and take me back to the same page. Kindly provide advice/guidance as I am to get the visa in time to enable me to attend a fully sponsored spring school course. Thank you.

Bro, back off the site socked My visa fee, my wife and three kids visa fees too and later canceled our application.

Confidence05:
Pls I need guidance on filling the South African e-Visa form. I am have completed the first stage but unable to proceed to the second stage where I need to upload my documents. If I click save and continue, it will just load for a while and take me back to the same page. Kindly provide advice/guidance as I am to get the visa in time to enable me to attend a fully sponsored spring school course. Thank you.

hmgkope:
Have you applied for one this year and got it within the time you put up there? If not please stop posting that up.
A lot of have applied for way more than that time and are still waiting for response even for tourist visa that doesn't need to go to DHA in Pretoria.

That’s why I said IF all things goes well sir. You can get it in that time frame. A friend of mine got his own after 3 months, there is another one research visa after 4 months. So it’s varies Chairman!

Rands available. DM if interested.

Good morning,

The information I am about to share with you may be helpful to one or two people. A common adage we all know is "make hay when the sun shines.". Back when obtaining a Permanent Residence permit in South Africa was easier and stress-free, many people advised us to apply regardless of whether we needed it. Some of us ignored the call, while others applied and got it right away! With the permit, I have been presented with many opportunities, and I am grateful for Mr. Mandela's fight for equal opportunity. Nowadays, it is difficult to obtain any type of visa in South Africa or outside of it. What's the reason? The economic downturn caused by Covid-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war is sweeping the globe, and South Africa is not immune. In what sense does this mean? At the moment, South Africa is facing many challenges. Considering the high unemployment rate, and those who are looking for cheap political points, most locals are advocating extreme measures on immigration. A second reason is that South Africa is trying to limit the number of economic immigrants looking for a safe haven in their country. Therefore, some categories of visas have been halted, technically. This is not Nigerian-related.

What are the implications of this development?

1. A student or prospective hustler living in South Africa no longer has a better opportunity to hustle. Scholarships and funding are difficult to obtain for research master's and doctoral degrees unless you are a permanent resident.

2. South Africa does not allow you to extend your visitor visa while you are there. Your chances of ending up on the streets are high without a permit!

Advice

1. Your travel history may determine whether you can get your visa for a vacation in South Africa. Other countries, even those in Africa, may be of interest to you. If you're thinking about studying, why not consider other options?

My personal observations are not intended to discourage you from leaving Nigeria for greener pastures abroad, only to indicate that the pastures no longer seem green. Also, keep in mind that we have different fates.

Confidence05:
Pls I need guidance on filling the South African e-Visa form. I am have completed the first stage but unable to proceed to the second stage where I need to upload my documents. If I click save and continue, it will just load for a while and take me back to the same page. Kindly provide advice/guidance as I am to get the visa in time to enable me to attend a fully sponsored spring school course. Thank you.

Click submit, and proceed to upload. But I advise u do a paper application, I couldn't go past the upload documents, the site sucks. You may be lucky if you give it a try. But I'm submitting via VFS asap.

AskGod07:
Bro, back off the site socked My visa fee, my wife and three kids visa fees too and later canceled our application.

Na very useless site. I wonder who designed it. Very poor interface. I was lucky not to even get to the payment page. I got stuck trying to upload documents with no luck.

Gidariro:
Good morning,

The information I am about to share with you may be helpful to one or two people. A common adage we all know is "make hay when the sun shines.". Back when obtaining a Permanent Residence permit in South Africa was easier and stress-free, many people advised us to apply regardless of whether we needed it. Some of us ignored the call, while others applied and got it right away! With the permit, I have been presented with many opportunities, and I am grateful for Mr. Mandela's fight for equal opportunity. Nowadays, it is difficult to obtain any type of visa in South Africa or outside of it. What's the reason? The economic downturn caused by Covid-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war is sweeping the globe, and South Africa is not immune. In what sense does this mean? At the moment, South Africa is facing many challenges. Considering the high unemployment rate, and those who are looking for cheap political points, most locals are advocating extreme measures on immigration. A second reason is that South Africa is trying to limit the number of economic immigrants looking for a safe haven in their country. Therefore, some categories of visas have been halted, technically. This is not Nigerian-related.

What are the implications of this development?

1. A student or prospective hustler living in South Africa no longer has a better opportunity to hustle. Scholarships and funding are difficult to obtain for research master's and doctoral degrees unless you are a permanent resident.

2. South Africa does not allow you to extend your visitor visa while you are there. Your chances of ending up on the streets are high without a permit!

Advice

1. Your travel history may determine whether you can get your visa for a vacation in South Africa. Other countries, even those in Africa, may be of interest to you. If you're thinking about studying, why not consider other options?

My personal observations are not intended to discourage you from leaving Nigeria for greener pastures abroad, only to indicate that the pastures no longer seem green. Also, keep in mind that we have different fates.

the point is that they fail to make a decision in time and return people’s passport. It’s not compulsory you grant people visas, but make a decision in time, weather favorable or not, and return someone’s passport.
I was thinking of traveling to SA in December for vacation, but can’t apply, eventhough i have been there before and also have good travel history, because I fear they may decide to hold my passport for 6months.

Dear all,

Please I need the SA embassy (Abuja) and consular office (Lagos) email and/or contact numbers. Thanks in anticipation for your help.

I received the message on my phone from a friend in SA.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfISzSWRQ2JZn1zYr_gMpgdAHGeq6DoqS2WMMPgCjFCNkjJCQ/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0

.

Hiikayauto:
tourist visa application I summited in abuja since march 28.. I got a message today (5 months) after that my application is ready for collection. my travel date already passed.. I wont be surprised if I got denied. at least make I collect my passport back.

Same here. Applied since 4th APril, finally fot the mail that our visas have finally been released today! 4 and a half months later! Our passports would be expiring y january, they might use that as a basis for rejection . Hoping to know our fate when the passports arrive o.

After this experience, wetin I dey go find for useless country.

this only for student
i think

chemashie:
I received the message on my phone from a friend in SA.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfISzSWRQ2JZn1zYr_gMpgdAHGeq6DoqS2WMMPgCjFCNkjJCQ/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0

k4kenny:


Same here. Applied since 4th APril, finally fot the mail that our visas have finally been released today! 4 and a half months later! Our passports would be expiring y january, they might use that as a basis for rejection . Hoping to know our fate when the passports arrive o.

After this experience, wetin I dey go find for useless country.

Did you apply for tourist visa as well?