Home Affairs’ priority visa for Chinese and Indian tourists sees first results

The first group of Chinese tourists taking advantage of their new priority status are in South Africa.

As beneficiaries of the new Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS) visa initiative, the tourists had their visas processed within days.

The TTTOS was launched in October, aiming to entice visitors from China and India — markets identified as key to the growth of the tourism sector.  

100 million outbound Chinese tourists

Cape Town welcomed 15 tourists from China this weekend and the group are among 65 that submitted their applications 11 days before arriving on South African soil.  

When launching the TTOS, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) stated that Chinese tourists made over 100 million outbound trips in 2023, while CNBC recently reported that Indian tourists are predicted to spend over US$70 billion a year by 2034.

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South Africa wishes to cash in on those figures, but currently only attracts roughly 40 000 Chinese and just under 80 000 Indian tourists per year.

The DHA believes boosting tourism by only 10% per year can increase annual economic growth by 0.6% and create thousands of new jobs for South Africans.

“We have no doubt that the TTOS will exponentially increase arrivals from India and China which will stimulate demand across the tourism and services sector,” stated Minister Leon Schreiber this weekend.

Creating ease of access

The TTOS facilitates easier digital processing of group visa applications from China and India, streamlining capacity constraints at foreign missions and overcoming language barriers.

The initiative will form part of a legislative trifecta, using the Electronic Travel Authorisation and Digital Nomad visas to make South Africa a travel destination of choice.

“All TTOS applications will be handled by a dedicated team of adjudicators to ensure swift and reliable processing,” stated the department when launching the programme.

“In turn, operators will be held liable for any legal transgressions committed by tourists travelling under their banner,” the department clarified.

Tour operators who wish to be eligible to the TTOS must apply through the department and will need to have been in operation for at least 12 months.

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