South Africa Citizenship

South African citizenship may be achieved through birth, through descent, or for foreign nationals in possession of South African permanent residency, via the process of South African naturalisation. Several South African visas and immigration services may be granted as permanent residence permits and in some cases a temporary permit may be issued as a precursor to an application for a permanent South African visa. Although a grant of permanent residency allows the holder to live and work in South Africa as they choose, it does not grant all the rights afforded by citizenship, most notably the right to vote.

You can take the first step towards South African citizenship today by completing one of our straightforward online assessment forms. Just take a few moments to visit the online assessment area now and a specialist South African immigration consultant will respond to your enquiry.

Applying for South African Citizenship – Citizenship Through Birth

Applying for South African citizenship based upon birth requires a candidate to prove the date and location of their birth which must have been within the current definition of South Africa. Applicants may also need to provide full details of their parentage and based upon the year of their birth.

Births Occurring Before 1949

Candidates applying in this category do not have to provide details of their parentage and will only be required to prove that they were born within South African before 1949.

Births Occurring Between 1949 and June 1961

Candidates with births occurring between 1949 and June 1961 will also need to demonstrate that they were born in South Africa; however, they must also demonstrate that their Father was either a South Africa citizen or permanent resident, not a prohibited immigrant at the time.

Births Occurring Between July 1961 and 1994

For candidates whose birth occurred within this date range, it will be necessary that their birth took place in South Africa and that either parent held citizenship or permanent residency at the time.

Applicants Born Since 1995

Applicants born since 1995 must be able to prove their place of birth and show that either one of their parents holds citizenship or permanent residency, or that they have no right to a grant of citizenship in any other country.

South African Citizenship Application – Citizenship Through Descent

The second route to a grant of South African citizenship is through descent which allows foreign nationals to immigrate to South Africa despite not being born there. In order to qualify for South African citizenship in this way an applicant must have a parent who is currently a South African citizen.

South African Citizenship via Naturalisation

This category applies to all candidates who wish to relocate to South Africa permanently but do not have any ancestral ties to the country. To apply, a candidate must be living in South Africa and must already have a grant of permanent residency. Applicants must be over 21 years of age, of good character and must meet the minimum residency requirements for South African naturalisation. A candidate must have been living in South Africa for at least five years prior to submitting the application and one of these years must be that which directly precedes their application. The remaining four years do not have to be continuous, but must be within the last eight years overall. However, these residency requirements will be halved when an applicant is the spouse of a South African citizen.

Applicants will also need to be skilled in one of South Africa’s official 11 languages which are; Afrikaans, English, Southern Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Sotho, Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu.

Visit the Global Visas online assessment area today to find out whether you can apply for South African citizenship and to begin your application.