Visa Assistance

08/07/2026

📣 As of 1 July, travellers entering or leaving South Africa must submit their Customs Online Traveller Declaration before they travel. 🇿🇦

This applies to any person entering or leaving South Africa by air, land or sea and rail and includes South African citizens, residents and foreign travellers. ✈️🚘🚉⛴️

Find out more on the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

24/06/2026

Japan announces major hike in visa fees

Japan will increase its visa fees, effective July 1.

At a press conference, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Toshimitsu Motegi, said single-entry visa fees would increase from JPY3 000 to JPY15 000 (R305 to R1 522). Multiple-entry visas will increase from JPY6 000 to JPY30 000 (R609 to R3 045).

When asked about the Ministry’s reasoning, Motegi said the adjustments had been driven by rising commodity prices and changes in exchange rates, noting that fees had remained unchanged since 1978.

He said he did not expect the increases to negatively impact tourist arrivals.

Information from TNW

10/02/2026

Important news regarding Italy visa:

Italy will pause visa applications this month while the consulate and VFS systems undergo maintenance and upgrades. During the shutdown, both systems will be offline and no operations will be possible.

VFS Centres in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Gaborone, Nelspruit, Polokwane and Bloemfontein will be shut down from February 11-18, resuming normal operations on February 19.

Application centres in Cape Town, Gqeberha and George will not accept visa applications from February 13-17 and will resume operations on February 18.

Arrangements will be made to reschedule affected appointments.

Centres will remain open for visa collections only.

Source ENTW

15/01/2026

!!Urgent!! Update Greek visa applications on hold

All GVCW Visa Application Centers in South Africa stopped accepting Greek visa applications from January 1.

The application centres are in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, handling visa applications on behalf of the Greek consulates and collecting relevant biometric data.

“We would like to inform you that all GVCW Visa Application Centers in South Africa will gradually cease accepting applications and will officially discontinue operations as of January 1. Until further notice, applicants are kindly requested to contact the relevant Greek diplomatic mission according to their location,” the application center said in a notice.

The Greek consulate told Travel News that, as a result, all non-urgent tourist visa applications were on hold. The visa application centres are expected to reopen by February 1.

Details received fromTNW

31/12/2025

28/11/2025

THAI E-VISA APPLICATION NOTICE

All visa applications must be submitted online via www.thaievisa.go.th. In-person applications at the Royal Thai Embassy are not accepted.

✅Applicants are advised to submit their applications at least one month prior to the intended date of travel.

✅Please review the user manual on the website, select the appropriate visa category, and check your personal details carefully.

✅All applications are subject to approval. The Royal Thai Embassy may request an interview or additional documents. Submission does not guarantee a visa, and visa fees are non-refundable.

✅For visa-related enquiries, please contact [email protected]

27/11/2025

Good Morning to all my followers. Please see below news on Thailand:

Thailand’s Immigration Bureau has introduced stricter measures to curb the misuse of visa-exempt stays.According to Thailand’s Public Relations Dep…

28/05/2025

Germany to end visa appeals process

From July 1, Germany will no longer allow visa applicants to make an administrative appeal if their visa is rejected.

The decision is based on a pilot project, where the suspension of visa appeals for rejected Schengen and national visas was tested from June 2023. The pilot project revealed that removing the remonstration procedure freed up staff to process more visa applications and reduced waiting times.

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When the new rules are implemented, applicants will only be able to appeal through a formal judicial process. Applicants can still submit a new visa application if their previous one was rejected.