If you want to travel to Qatar but don’t know if you need a visa for Qatar, you’ve come to the right place! We’re here to help you understand how to get a visa for Qatar. We’ll also let you know what the recent changes are regarding getting a visa for Qatar.

It’s an unfortunate reality, but every once in a while, a person is taken advantage of it. I’ll give you a prime example: While this situation may seem far-fetched or unlikely to happen to you, it happens more often than you might think. This is especially the case when you are traveling alone are unfamiliar with the destination country’s laws and culture.

Do I Need A Visa For Qatar From South Africa

Visa Requirements for South Africans

Are you a South African planning on going overseas? Preparation is key when it comes to travelling. Aside from packing your bags, saving cash for pocket money and making sure that you have all your necessary toiletries and prescribed medication, a visa may be necessary, depending on where you are going. 

Avoid Advice from Social Media

In applying for the visa it is key that you don’t rely on advice from social media. And in particular ignore any advice to lie on your visa applications – this could result in your arrest. Always work through official channels.

Passport application

In order to travel out of the country everyone needs a valid passport. This is applicable even when a visa is not required! Often the passport even has to be valid for a certain period after the planned return date, as governments worry that there may be unforeseen circumstances resulting in you staying in the country longer than foreseen. We advise to always have at least 9 months left in your passport before it expires – most countries only require 6 months validity.

Passport applications used to be a troublesome, long procedure often involving long queues and waiting periods. In order to cut back on this you can now apply for your passport at selected banks. Nedbank, Standard bank and FNB are all participating. They are working on signing ABSA on as well. As this is still being rolled out, it would be best to consult your nearest bank to find out whether they are participating in this or not. You can still apply for your passport at your nearest Department of Home Affairs as well.

Visa no longer required to visit Qatar

All you need is a valid South African passport with at least 6 months validity before it expires, measured from the date you leave Qatar, and a valid flight ticket out of Qatar. South Africans will be given a visa as they enter Qatar, free of charge.

April 2017 Russia introduces visa-free travel

One of the advantages of the SA government being bosom buddies with Russia, is that they’ve announced that South African passport holders can now travel visa-free to Russia.

45% Hike in Dubai visa charges

Dubai’s cabinet has signed a new resolution (number 22 for 2014) which will see visa charges to Dubai undergo a 45% hike. The new resolution comes into effect on the 13th of November 2014. South African passport holders currently pay R1500 for a stay of 14 days or less. South Africans will now be paying R2175 for a visan from the 13th of November 2014, that’s a hike of R675.

Visa-free countries

Below are the countries that do not require a visa from South Africans. Be sure to check with your embassy before travelling, to ensure it’s still the case, and also to phone your airline to check whether there are any other immigration procedures which are enforced (for example, you may be required to arrive arrive at the airport early with certain documentation; e.g. proof of accommodation, travel insurance, proof of sufficient funds, etc…):

Andorra (Andorra doesn’t require any visas to visit, but it’s only possible to enter the country via Spain or France which each require a Schengen visa)
Antarctica
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Benin
Botswana (11 April 2013: The government of Botswana is no longer accepting emergency travel documents for South Africans wanting to visit the country: “the Republic of Botswana wishes to communicate a notice from the Immigration Department informing that travellers using emergency travel documents will not be admitted to the Republic of Botswana for routine visits. Only those travelling under circumstances of emergency will be admitted under the authority of an emergency travel document.”)
Brazil
Chile
Cambodia
Costa Rica
Ecuador
El Salvador
Fiji
Georgia
Gabon
Guatemala
Guyana
Hong Kong (up to 30 days)
Ireland : Whilst Ireland is nominally visa-free for South Africans, in fact it may be more convenient if they did require visas! Whilst you don’t require a visa to travel to Ireland, it is vital to note that other immigration procedures may be enforced, which require you to produce certain documentation – bank statements showing you have enough money, travel insurance, proof of accommodation, a return flight ticket and a valid passport – which cannot be a temporary passport. Check with your airline whether they require you to produce this information, and when (for example they may require you to come well before the normal time you’d arrive at the airport for a flight).
Israel
Jamaica
Kenya (Visa will be required from the 1st of September 2014)
Lesotho
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mauritius
Mozambique (Note that all non-SADC nationals require a visa to enter Mozambique. This also applies to cruises from Durban to Mozambique – visas are no longer being issued on board, and need to be obtained prior to the cruise).
Namibia
(New Zealand is no longer on this list. Since 2016 South Africans have required a visa to visit NZ; because too many South Africans were getting stopped at the border. Click here to see how to apply for a visa to New Zealand).
Nicaragua
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Qatar
Russia
Samoa
Seychelles
Singapore
Sri Lanka
Swaziland
Tanzania (visa free since 1 July 2013 for travelling on holiday, business or transit. Business travellers must pay USD200 on entry)
Thailand
Uruguay
Vanuatu
Zambia
Zimbabwe (in Oct 2012, SA & Zimbabwe signed an MoU abolishing visa requirements, to enable citizens to easily travel between the 2 countries)

India visa

9 March 2017: New article we’ve written: Read about how to get an Indian visa if you’re South African.

Schengen visa

From the 6th June 2013 fingerprints will be required for Schengen visa applications – meaning that you will need to appear in person (children under the age of 12 are exempt).

Non-refundable application fees

Bear in mind that if your visa application is unsuccessful, you wont be refunded your application fees, so be sure to get it right the first time. Also, you usually need to have booked your flight ticket before you apply for a visa (assuming you need to fly), so be doubly sure you’ll get your visa before you even buy your airline ticket.

Our readers are our writers. Email us a travel experience and we’ll send you a travel voucher to discount the cost of your next flight, cruise, car rental or accommodation booked with us.

Single / multiple-entry visa

My 4th experience to remember came a few weeks later when we decided to catch a hydrofoil from Rhodes to Turkey, for a day trip. Fortunately we had booked but not paid for the trip. We arrived at the harbour and were about to board the hydrofoil, when one of the immigration officials asked us where we were going to go after Turkey. We told him we were planning to come back to Greece. It transpired that if we left Greece we would not be allowed to return to pick up our bags and flight tickets – the reason being that we only had a single entry visa. So lesson number 4 for any adventurous traveller is: “Make sure that you have a double-entry visa, (preferably before you board a boat) ”.

By Carol Clifford. For Carol’s first 3 lessons in travel, see (1) why bags must have wheels, (2) when in Austria do as the Austrians do, and (3) local cuisine may differ from what we’re used to.

General Requirements

As a South African, what would you need in order to secure a visa to your chosen international destination?

• First and foremost you have to check the current validity of your passport. Make sure that the expiry date is far from the dates that you would be travelling, with at least 6 months of validity remaining on your passport when you complete your travelling. Your passport should have at least 2 or 3 blank pages left, for stamps upon your arrival and departure.