Visa application figures soar as South Africans fly again

Saffers spread their wings as tourism recovers

With the festive season on our doorstep and more countries lifting Covid-19 travel restrictions and reopening borders, South Africans are stirring. And they’re venturing into the world, with Italy, Canada, the Netherlands and Australia among their favourite destinations for business and leisure travel.

Visa-processing company VFS Global says international travel is picking up, with visa applications between January and August shooting up by 700% or eight times more than the same period in 2021.

In August the number of visa applications to 21 countries serviced by the centre in SA had already exceeded the total application count for 2021, by 260%.

This time last year many international borders were still closed under pandemic restrictions.

Sub-Saharan Africa head at VFS Global, Hariprasad Viswanathan, said with more international sporting events such as the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup in Australia and the upcoming Fifa Soccer World Cup in Qatar, “consumer confidence and desire to travel has increased”.

“The opening of international borders, the lifting of travel restrictions, the reviving of international flights and reopening of on-campus classes by overseas universities are the major contributors to the current increase in visa applications and outbound traffic from SA this year,” said Viswanathan in Cape Town on Tuesday.

With many countries having increased destination marketing to bolster tourism after the turmoil created by the pandemic, “their efforts are starting to show dividends”.

This has been the case with Italy investing heavily in post-pandemic marketing of the country, well-known for its contributions to the world of art, architecture, fashion and fine wine. Trade between SA and these top destinations also plays a role in attracting visitors.

In the wake of the pandemic, VFS Global has also observed several shifts in customer preferences and needs, as health and safety concerns are major factors when people apply for visas.

Wesgro’s latest monthly tourism report indicates that in September about 486,000 two-way domestic and 152,000 international travellers passed through Cape Town airport, representing recovery rates of 66% and 81% respectively, compared to the same month in 2019.

Provincial finance and economic opportunities MEC Mireille Wenger said: “As we gear up for an impressive summer season, these recovery rates are welcome and are expected to increase. This is why I recently hosted a summer readiness dialogue with key stakeholders in the tourism and hospitality sector which focused on key preparations for the upcoming summer season.

We are gearing up for an impressive summer season in tourism industry