Travel

Obtaining your South African visa

It is our utmost priority to ensure that all delegates, regardless of country of origin, are able to attend the International Maternal Newborn Health Conference (IMNHC) 2023. Please note that visa requirements differ from country to country. Please click here to see which countries are currently exempt from applying for a visa, and visit the Department of Home Affairs to determine which countries may use an e-visa. Learn more about applying for a South African visa on the Department of Home Affairs website.

We strongly advise you to contact the embassy and/or consulate directly on any documentation that may be required prior to attempting to submit your application or applying in person. We have been informed from delegates that guidance being given in person may differ from what is otherwise publicly available. Click here to see a list of all South African embassies and their contact information.

An updated Letter of Invitation and Intention to Attend for Visa Purposes with additional information is now available in your Dryfta account. To download your letter, please follow these directions: 

1. Go to our conference page on Dryfta and click “Login” in the upper right.
2. During conference registration, you were asked to provide details to facilitate the generation of the visa invite letter. You may check that the visa information section of your profile is complete by clicking on “Update Profile” under your name in the upper right. 
3. Scroll down to the PASSPORT INFORMATION section. Ensure it is completed, otherwise your visa invite letter will not be generated with the proper information.
4. Once you have ensured the sections are complete, click “Update Profile” at the bottom of the page.
5. In the upper right, click on “Profile Overview” under your name. You will find yourself back on your Profile Overview page where ‘Generate Visa Letter’ appears.
6. Click ‘Generate Visa Letter’ to download your Letter of Invitation and Intention to Attend IMNHC 2023.

It is important that you update your profile to contain your passport information as this is necessary for the ‘Letter of Invitation and Intention to Attend for Visa Purposes’ to be available to you. This passport information will also be provided to our Government of South Africa colleagues who will be assisting with any visa challenges our delegates may encounter.

If you are facing any visa application challenges, please fill out this form and someone from our team will be in contact with you.

We are in regular communication with the South African Government to help support the visa process. Please note that follow up by our South African colleagues can only take place if all application materials have been submitted through the embassy and/or embassy website. We have also been advised that most applications require a minimum of 10 business days for processing.

We will continue to update this page as information becomes available regarding the visa process. Please also refer to the FAQs for more information.