When British Airways refused to let me board a flight from Johannesburg to Spain via Heathrow a few months ago, my valid US visa was in an old passport in my pocket. It would have got me onto the plane, but neither the check-in agent nor I knew it.
South African passport holders need a UK transit visa for that connection, and I did not have one. The flight, conference and hotel booking all went down with the boarding pass I never received.
Only afterwards did I learn that the US visa qualified me for an exemption from the transit visa. I merely had to produce it.
A visa may grant entry to the country named on it, qualify its holder for another country’s e-visa, remove the need for a third country’s visa, or work only at selected airports. A traveller’s occupation changes the type of visa needed, even when the trip is a holiday.
South Africans ordinarily need a visa to enter Mexico, but holders of valid visas from the US, Canada, UK, Japan or a Schengen country are exempt. When Mexico co-hosted the 2026 FIFA World Cup and played South Africa in the opening match, that removed an entire application from the trip. But there is a catch: the passport containing the visa must show it had been used, obviously via an entry stamp. The USA no longer stamps passports on entry.
South Africans qualify for Indian e-visas, and a tourist can apply online, receive an electronic travel authorisation by email and have the visa stamped into the passport on arrival. However, professional journalists, editors, columnists, photographers and travel writers must apply in person for a physical journalist visa, even if they are only travelling on holiday.
An Indian e-visa also works only through designated airports and seaports. Conference visitors may need an invitation along with government clearances connected to the event. If the electronic authorisation was issued against an old passport, the traveller must carry both the old and new passports.
Japan’s e-visa has a tech surprise. South African tourists can apply online for a single-entry visa permitting a stay of up to 90 days. However, anyone visiting for business or another purpose must use the embassy or consular route, where they receive a visa sticker in the passport.
At the airport, the Japanese e-visa holder must log into the system and display an official “visa issuance notice” while connected to the internet. A PDF, printout or screenshot is not accepted. A flat battery or failed connection can therefore make a valid visa difficult to prove at check-in.
China illustrates the difference between an online visa application and an e-visa. South Africans complete the form and upload their documents online. Once the preliminary review is approved, they print the application certificate and take their original passport to the Chinese Visa Application Service Centre. The process begins online, but the visa still ends up as a physical document in the passport.
China’s 240-hour visa-free transit scheme allows travellers from 57 countries to enter through specified ports and spend up to 10 days in approved areas while travelling onward to a third country or region. But South Africa is not on the list.
South Africans can use China’s 24-hour visa-free transit provision if they remain within the restricted area of the port and hold a confirmed onward ticket. Leaving that area demands a temporary entry permit from border officials. A long connection in Shanghai is therefore different from a ten-day stopover in China.
South Africans can apply electronically for a UAE tourist visa, but the application may be handled through a UAE-based airline, hotel, tour operator or sponsor. The country also offers 48-hour and 96-hour transit visas sponsored by UAE airlines. The 48-hour version is free, but the longer one carries a fee.
Türkiye shows how one visa can be used to obtain another. South Africans can use a valid visa from the US, UK, Ireland or a Schengen country as a supporting document for a Turkish e-visa. The supporting visa can be unused and single-entry, provided it remains valid when the traveller enters Türkiye.
One more thing: any of these rules can change at any time. Do your research in good enough time before you travel. And a month before does not count as good enough.
* Arthur Goldstuck is CEO of World Wide Worx, editor-in-chief of Gadget.co.za and GadgetWings, and author of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI – The African Edge”.