Do South Africans need a visa for United Arab Emirates (Dubai)?

e-Visafor South African passports

South Africans need a UAE visa arranged before they fly, usually through their airline or a visa centre. It takes about 3 to 4 working days.

Stay30 days on the usual tourist visa

30-day single-entry tourist visaAbout R1,230–R1,370, depending on who arranges it

Difficulty 3 of 5

Last checkedChecked17 Oct 2026

What changed: Since 25 June 2026, South Africans who hold a valid residence permit from certain countries (such as the US, UK or an EU country) can get a visa on arrival instead. A South African passport alone doesn’t qualify.

What you need

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Passport valid at least 6 months from the date you enter
Flight ticket (airlines arrange visas only for booked passengers)
Passport copy and photo
Bank letter or statement, and an employer letter
Hotel booking

How to do it

Book your flights first.
Apply through your airline (Emirates via “Manage your booking”, or Etihad) or through VFS.
Wait about 3 to 4 working days, then print the visa.

Official site:

UAE government portal: do you need a visa?

Airlines decide whether you can board using a database called Timatic. Before you fly, check your route on the IATA Travel Centre.

What it costs in rand

Item	Cost
30-day single-entry tourist visa	About R1,230–R1,370, depending on who arranges it
30-day multiple-entry visa	About R2,400–R2,730

Rand amounts use the exchange rate on 9 October 2026 (R16.53 to the US dollar, R18.50 to the euro, R21.87 to the pound) and are rounded. Work out your whole trip in the budget calculator.

Common problems and fixes

Paid for a visa you didn’t need

If you hold a valid US, UK or EU residence permit, check the visa-on-arrival rules first.

Visa not ready in time

Apply at least a week before you fly; processing takes 3 to 4 working days.

Plan your trip

Best timeNovember to March

MoneyDirham (AED)

Three trip ideas

Old Dubai

The creek, an abra boat ride and the souks.

The desert

An evening desert drive and camp.

Abu Dhabi

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and the Louvre Abu Dhabi.

Good to know

Summer is extremely hot: plan outdoor time for winter.

Book

Flights Places to stay Tours and activities

Sources and checks

Checked17 Oct 2026

Checked on 17 Oct 2026. The official page was silent on some details or couldn’t be opened from our checker, so those details are confirmed by at least two independent sources.

officialCheck if you need a visa to enter the UAE · UAE Government portal · no date shown
secondaryDubai visa application for South Africans · Travelstart · published 4 Nov 2025
secondaryUAE conditions for visa on arrival for South African passport holders · Legit.ng · published 11 Jul 2026
dataPassport Index Data (visa matrix for 199 passports, updated 17 Feb 2026) · imorte, continuing the dataset by Ilya Ilyankou (MIT licence) · published 17 Feb 2026

How we check: our method and every source we use.

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