The Minister of Home Affairs, Leon Schreiber, has announced the gazetting of a second invitation for applications to the highly acclaimed Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS).

This follows an unprecedented response since the first processing of tourist visa applications from China and India through this initiative in February, which has inspired calls for expansion from tour operators eager to streamline the visa process and attract more visitors to South Africa.

The Department of Home Affairs has expressed its enthusiasm over the overwhelming demand, highlighting the transformative potential these visa reforms can have in generating employment opportunities by welcoming more international tourists.

Recognising this momentum, Minister Schreiber has launched a new application window for tour operators to partake in the programme, underpinned by recent upgrades to the online platform that facilitates TTOS applications.

Tour operators interested in joining the TTOS now have a period of 30 days to submit their applications exclusively through a dedicated online portal, which can be accessed via the Department’s official website.

Notably, the scheme will not accept any paper-based applications. The selection process remains rigorous, entailing assessment by an interdepartmental team augmented with Artificial Intelligence tools to ensure the vetting and selection of qualified participants.

Prior to the TTOS, South Africa had only four diplomatic missions to cater to a staggering 2.8 billion potential tourists from China and India.

Schreiber said the pivotal role digitisation plays in the scheme’s success.

“The key to the success of TTOS lies in the fact that the process has been digitally transformed from start to end,” Schreiber said.

“Whereas prospective tourists from China and India previously had to stand in long queues, submit paper applications, and sometimes wait so long for paper outcomes that they missed their flights, the digitalisation of this process through TTOS means that even visa outcomes for large groups are now issued digitally within hours.”

The TTOS initiative was launched by the Department of Home Affairs in response to the ongoing visa challenges that have historically deterred tourists from countries with significant travel potential, such as China and India.

In 2023, South Africa welcomed only a mere 37 000 tourists from China and 79 000 from India, a stark contrast to the 100 million people who travel from both nations annually.

Since its inception, TTOS has already made a tangible impact on South Africa’s tourism landscape, with more than 2 000 additional tourists from China and India visiting the country, countering the inefficiencies of the prior visa systems.

Schreiber said even more encouraging was the trend of applications received. On the first day of operation, 12 February, 21 applications were received but on Thursday last week, this figure had grown to 165 per day and shows no sign of slowing down.

Scheiber said this upward trajectory reinforced the importance of diversifying the network of tour operators involved in the scheme, which will further catalyse the growth of the sector.

“The intake of more operators will further accelerate this growth as Home Affairs delivers on our commitment to replacea manual, paper-based and insecure visa system with secure, world-class digitalinfrastructure to drive economic growth,” he said.

BUSINESS REPORT