ON Thursday, the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, presented the Department’s brand-new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) to the Tourism Business Council of South Africa’s Leadership Conference.

The department spokesperson Duwayne Esau said, “The ETA will enable visa applicants to apply online, capture biometrics, and receive approvals in real-time, eliminating lengthy processing times and cumbersome documentation. It will be integrated with an upgraded Electronic Movement Control System (EMCS 2.0) that will be based on facial recognition at ports of entry, starting with OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airport. This will ensure seamless arrivals through automated biometric checks and minimal queuing, enhancing both traveller experience and national security.”

Also read: Durbanites voice expectations for new Home Affairs administration

Tourism Minister Patricia de Lillie welcomed the announcement of the ETA system. “We must now, as the tourism sector, up our marketing in other countries because it is definitely going to drive up the demand, the demand for more flights coming to our country”, she said.

Minister Schreiber said, “The ETA is set to eliminate visa barriers that have suppressed South Africa’s tourism potential for many years, while simultaneously revolutionising the security of our immigration processes. Instead of long queues, paper forms and inefficiency, from now on, the first impression that tourists will get of South Africa will be when they apply online for an ETA.”

Over the coming years, the ETA is set to be expanded to other visa categories, with automated entry-and-exit, based on facial recognition, to be rolled out to all ports of entry.

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