The 106 countries that South Africans can travel to visa-free

There are 106 countries that South African passport holders can travel to visa-free, making the country’s passport the 48th strongest passport globally.

This is according to the most recent information provided by the Henley Passport Index, which is the original, authoritative ranking of all the world’s passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.

The index is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) – the largest, most accurate travel information database – and enhanced by Henley & Partners’ research team.

The total score for each passport is equal to the number of destinations for which no visa is required.

Of the 106 countries South Africans can travel to visa-free, various have been ranked as among the world’s top tourist destinations: including Thailand, Singapore and Brazil (which rank among the top 20).

Since 2006, South Africa’s passport strength ranking position has dropped from a high of 35 in 2009 to a low of 58 in 2021 to its current ranking of 48 (as of 30 September 2024).

From this, there are 120 destinations that South Africans would require a visa to travel to.

Christian H. Kaelin, Chairman of Henley & Partners, said that the global mobility gap between those at the top and bottom of the passport mobility index is now greater than ever.

“The average number of destinations travellers are able to access visa-free has nearly doubled from 58 in 2006 to 111 in 2024.

However, the top-ranked country (Singapore) is now able to travel to 169 more destinations visa-free than Afghanistan, which sits at the bottom of the ranking with access to just 26 countries without a visa.

The global passport rankings are seen as:

At the start of 2024, South Africans were able to travel to 108 countries visa-free.

However, recent developments has meant that this has dropped.

Notably, Ireland decided to proceed with this plan, and as of 10 July 2024, all South African citizens require a visa to travel to Ireland.

The move was reportedly a strategy to clamp down on asylum applications, with the Irish Department of Justice noting that the country has received hundreds of International Protection applications from Zimbabweans and people from the Democratic Republic of Congo travelling on these passports.

Ireland was one of only four countries in Europe that offered visa-free travel to South Africans, meaning this now drops to three.

Georgia, Kosovo, and the Russian Federation are the three remaining European countries that South Africa can still access visa-free.

Additionally, the West African country of Togo recently dropped South Africa from their visa-free entry status.

Although the 106 is down from the start of the year, it is still higher than the 97 recorded in 2016.

Additionally, there may be further developments in the upcoming year.

Recently, Home Affairs minister Leon Schreiber said that he is excited about the new visa reforms to be introduced in 2025, which are aimed at boosting tourism from China and India.

The department announced changes to its visa system to make it easier for groups of tourists from these countries to apply for visas and travel to South Africa – hoping for the same to be done for South African tourists.

Countries where South Africans can travel to visa-free

(Note: *visa on arrival; **eTA [electronic travel authorisation]):

Africa

Americas 

Asia

Caribbean

Europe

Middle East 

Oceania 

Read: The European emigration hotspot for rich South Africans