Home Affairs launches new tourism program for China and India

Home Affairs’ Trusted Tour Operator Scheme goes live

Phase one of the Department of Home Affairs’ new visa programme, which was announced last September, officially went live on Wednesday, 12 February.

The Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS) will now make it easier for selected tour operators from China and India to obtain visas for tourists who wish to visit South Africa.

According to Tourism Update, the TTOS addresses an ongoing obstacle to tourism growth from these nations due to long queues, red tape and not being able to process group applications timeously.

Before the TTOS was established, there were only two South African missions in China, and only two in India. These were expected to serve the 2.8 billion people living in those countries who wished to visit South Africa.

Now, under the new TTOS digital-first system, tourists from both these countries using approved tour operators won’t have to visit a mission, fill in a form or stand in a long queue for visas. They will instead receive their visas digitally within three days.

“The fact that Home Affairs took the TTOS from conceptualisation to implementation in less than six months demonstrates our commitment to embracing digital transformation and to playing our role as an economic enabler to create jobs.” Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber said.

A boost for the economy

Schreiber also said that the TTOS was only the start of Home Affairs’ embrace of their role as an economic enabler.

“Research indicates that boosting tourism by only 10% per year can boost annual economic growth by 0.6% and create tens of thousands of new jobs for South Africans. Travelling in large groups is the preferred option for many tourists from some countries and it is time for our visa system to adapt in order to reflect and capitalise on this reality.” he said when the visa scheme was announced.

“Exciting as it is, TTOS is itself but an interim measure to boost tourism while we move with speed to digitally transform Home Affairs. Ultimately, our vision is for a fully automated process that delivers secure tourist visa outcomes digitally and within seconds to tourists from around the world.” Schreiber added.