South Africa’s ETA fee rises to 500 rands on 17 August 2026

French citizens remain visa-free for stays of up to 90 days and currently pay nothing when simply arriving with a valid passport, but the moment they choose to use the South African Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) platform after 17 August 2026, this new 500-rand charge will apply.

What the official gazette actually says

The ruling is contained in Government Gazette No. 55072 dated 27 July 2026 under file number R. 7744, introduced as the first revision to the Immigration Fees Regulations under the Immigration Act 2002. It was gazetted by Minister of Home Affairs Leon Amos Schreiber under section 7(1)(i) of the Act, following consultation with the Immigration Advisory Board and with the concurrence of the Minister of Finance.

The decree sets “a processing fee of 500 R (five hundred rand, currently ≈ 26 €) per ETA application.” An annex to the statutory notice adds a new line to the official tariff table: “electronic processing fee (applicable to all visas and permits lodged and processed online),” fixed at the same amount. The commencement date is explicit: “these provisions shall come into force on 17 August 2026.”

Mark your calendar with caution: the draft regulation is still subject to a 21-day public-comment period that stakeholders currently expect to close on 11 August 2026. That date does not appear in the published notice, so the fee and start date should still be treated as provisional until the final law is promulgated.

Why ETA fees are being introduced now

The ETA portal was soft-launched in October 2025 to speed entries linked to that year’s G20 summit, initially covering only four visa-required nationalities: China, India, Indonesia and Mexico. The original zero-fee stance is explained bluntly in the new decree: “as the ETA platform lacked an integrated online-payment capacity”. Pretoria now calls the zero-fee service an unsustainable “wholly subsidised arrangement” and says it is now ready to switch on full online payments.

This policy shift links to a presidential pledge made in Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2026 State of the Nation Address on 12 February 2026, when he announced the eventual rollout of ETA to all visa-required countries and a guaranteed 24-hour tourist turnaround.

The South African cabinet confirmed at its 29 July 2026 meeting that the ETA rollout and accompanying border-movement system are being rolled out at OR Tambo, Lanseria, King Shaka and Cape Town international airports.

How much you will pay by passport – the numbers

The new decree appends two tables matching the status quo with the proposed regime. Today, visa-required visitors pay an external provider 1 550 R plus a 425 R visa fee. After 17 August 2026:

Conversions based on 31 July 2026 midpoint rate: 1 R ≈ 0.0525 €.

For currently fee-paying nationalities the change is a cut; the Home Affairs Ministry says it has “internalised processing at less than half the cost travellers pay today”. It also clarifies that would-be visitors who are fee-exempt are simply charged the single 500 R processing cost and no additional visa duty.

French passport holders: nothing mandatory – yet

For travellers holding an ordinary French passport, this is the crucial detail. The South African Interior Ministry’s official exempt-country list still grants France 90 visa-free days on presentation of a valid passport with no consular fees—this arrangement is unchanged by the decree.

The gazette wording is explicit: “the ETA will become compulsory for travellers from countries not exempted from visa listed on the platform. Initially, it will remain optional for travellers from visa-exempt countries.” The policy also states that visa-exempt travellers “who voluntarily elect to use the ETA for the improved travel experience shall also be liable for the 500 R processing fee.”

In other words, you can still board your flight and enter South Africa exactly as you do today. However, the ministry is clearly banking on prompt uptake and calls voluntary use a policy choice to “encourage early adoption while preserving existing visa-free travel privileges.” No date is given for a future U-turn that would make ETA obligatory for currently exempt nationalities, so the calendar is open.

👉 Leaving France after 17 August 2026? Double-check first: if your stay is tourism or a visit within the 90-day visa-free window, the ETA remains a convenience only—do not pay the 500 R simply out of habit.

Bear in mind that ETA is entirely separate from the new online customs declaration that became compulsory for all inbound passengers on 1 July 2026, regardless of nationality (managed by a different authority). Ins and outs are explained in our dedicated article here.