Kenya visa requirements for South African citizens (September 2026)
I went through Kenya's immigration legal notices, a handful of law firm alerts written for exactly this kind of regulatory change, and Kenya's own eTA platform, because the visa requirements for Kenya for South African citizens have shifted twice since 2024, and most of what's written online still describes the middle step, not where things actually stand now. Some guides say South Africans need to apply for an eTA and pay for it. Others say the fee was waived. Neither is current. As of a change that took effect in 2025, South African citizens don't need an eTA at all.
The quick answer
South African citizens can enter Kenya for tourism or business without a visa and without an Electronic Travel Authorisation, for stays of up to 90 days. There's genuinely nothing to apply for, no fee to pay, and no online form to fill in before you travel, which is a meaningfully different position from where things stood as recently as 2024 and early 2025.
This came from a Kenyan government legal notice that took effect on 30 May 2025, which added a long list of nationalities, South Africa among them, to the countries exempt from needing an eTA at all. Before that, South Africans still had to apply for the eTA, just without paying the fee. Before that again, everyone paid. The direction of travel has consistently been toward less paperwork, not more.
None of this changes Kenya's ordinary entry basics. You still need a valid passport, and depending on your route into the country, you may still need a yellow fever certificate, covered properly below.
What people actually mean by these terms
Kenya's entry system has gone through enough changes recently that older and newer terms are floating around together, which causes real confusion.
eTA
Kenya's Electronic Travel Authorisation, introduced in 2024 to replace visas. Still required for most nationalities, but not for South Africans anymore.
The 2025 exemption
A specific legal change adding South Africa, along with roughly 30 other countries, to the list of nationalities that don't need an eTA at all.
EAC free movement
A separate, unrelated arrangement covering citizens of East African Community states, allowing up to 180 days. Doesn't apply to South Africans.
Kenyan visa
The old system, abolished for all nationalities from January 2024. If a site still talks about applying for a "Kenyan visa," it's describing something that no longer exists.
The mix-up people actually make: reading that South Africans were exempted from the eTA fee back in 2024 and assuming that's still the current rule. It isn't. That fee exemption was superseded in 2025 by a bigger change that removed the eTA requirement for South Africans entirely, not just the cost of it.
Entry requirements at a glance
| Requirement | Status | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Visa for tourism or business | Not required | Abolished for all nationalities since January 2024 |
| eTA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) | Not required for South Africans | Exempt since 30 May 2025, for stays up to 90 days |
| Passport validity | Recommended | At least 6 months, with a blank page, as a general standard |
| Yellow fever certificate | Conditional | Required only if arriving from, or transiting 12+ hours through, a designated endemic country |
| Stays over 90 days, work or study | Different permit required | Arranged in advance through Kenyan immigration |
How this went from a paid eTA to nothing at all
It's worth understanding the sequence here, because it explains why so much conflicting information about this specific route is still floating around. Kenya scrapped its visa system entirely on 1 January 2024 and replaced it with the eTA, which every foreign nationality, South Africans included, had to apply for and pay for before travelling.
From 15 February 2024, South Africa was added to a short list of countries exempted specifically from the eTA fee, while still needing to submit the application itself. That's the version of the rule a lot of still-circulating guides describe, and for over a year, it was accurate.
Then, under Legal Notice No. 93, which took effect on 30 May 2025 and was widely reported that July, Kenya went further and exempted South African citizens, along with around 30 other African nations and a handful of Caribbean and Pacific states, from needing an eTA at all, for stays of up to 90 days. That's the current position, and it's the one worth acting on, not the fee-waiver version that preceded it.
The yellow fever certificate people forget about
This is the detail that trips up South African travellers specifically, because it has nothing to do with South Africa itself and everything to do with how you get to Kenya. South Africa isn't on the World Health Organization's list of yellow fever risk countries, so flying directly from South Africa doesn't trigger any vaccination requirement.
The catch is transit. If your route includes a stopover of 12 hours or more in a country Kenya considers yellow fever endemic, and that list includes some genuinely common connection points for southern African travellers, you'll need a valid yellow fever certificate to enter Kenya, regardless of the fact that you're not required to have one travelling from South Africa itself. It's worth checking your specific routing and layover length against Kenya's current list before you assume this doesn't apply to you.
This isn't waived along with the eTA. Not needing an eTA doesn't mean not needing a yellow fever certificate. They're two separate requirements, and dropping one didn't touch the other.
Before you fly
- Don't apply for an eTA you no longer need. Some third-party sites will still try to process an application and charge you for it.
- Check your passport has 6 months' validity and a blank page, since it's still the standard airlines and immigration expect, even without an application to attach it to.
- Check your actual routing for yellow fever exposure, particularly if you're connecting through another African country for 12 hours or more.
- Keep proof of onward travel and accommodation handy, since border officials can still ask for it even without a formal application process.
- Confirm your specific circumstances if staying over 90 days or working, since that still needs a separate permit arranged in advance.
FAQ
What are the visa requirements for Kenya for South African citizens?
None. South African citizens can enter Kenya for tourism or business for up to 90 days without a visa and without an eTA, following a change that took effect on 30 May 2025.
Do South Africans still need to apply for an eTA, even for free?
No. This is different from the earlier rule. Between 2024 and 2025, South Africans were exempt only from the eTA fee, but still had to apply. Since May 2025, the application itself isn't required either.
Is this the same as the East African Community's free movement arrangement?
No. The EAC arrangement is a separate scheme for citizens of Burundi, the DRC, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, allowing up to 180 days. South Africa isn't part of it, but gets its own 90-day exemption under different rules.
Do I need a yellow fever certificate to enter Kenya from South Africa?
Not for a direct flight from South Africa, since South Africa isn't a designated yellow fever risk country. You will need one if your journey includes a 12-hour or longer transit through a country Kenya considers endemic.
What if I'm staying longer than 90 days, or want to work in Kenya?
That's outside the visa-free exemption entirely. Longer stays, work, or study need a separate permit arranged with Kenyan immigration before you travel, not something you can extend into once you're there.
Can I trust older articles that mention an eTA fee for South Africans?
Only as history. Anything describing South Africans paying for, or applying for, an eTA reflects the rules as they stood before 30 May 2025. The current position is that no eTA is needed at all.
Final verdict
For South Africans asking about visa requirements for Kenya, the honest answer right now is that there's nothing to apply for and nothing to pay. That's a real, current change, not an aspiration or a rumour, and it's more generous than what was true just eighteen months ago. The one thing actually worth checking before you book is your flight routing, since a long layover in the wrong country can bring a yellow fever requirement back into play even though your visa situation is now about as simple as it gets.
Sources: Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr, Kenya eTA exemption legal alert · Kenya's official eTA platform. Rules change without much warning, so confirm current requirements before booking.