Over the past two weeks consultants at Breytenbachs Immigration were overwhelmed with queries from South Africans who heard rumours that citizens from Commonwealth countries no longer needed a visitor visa to visit the UK.

Social media websites and dubious media publications made the announcement that citizens from Commonwealth countries, including South Africa, no longer are required to obtain a tourist visa to travel to the UK. According to the reports the said new visa regulations took effect when Theresa May took over as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Not only are visitors from the Commonwealth countries who are travelling to the UK exempt, but supposedly also business visitors.

Many South Africans were understandably very excited about this news. Unfortunately, the old saying that “if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is” held true in this instance.

The British authorities confirmed to Breytenbachs Immigration that there is no truth in the rumours. The current UK immigration rules stating that all visitors from visa national countries (including South Africa) who want to visit the UK are required to obtain a UK tourist visa before travelling to the UK are still in place.

Clients must please take note that South Africans who travel to the UK will not be allowed to enter the country without a valid visa. It is thus crucial that South Africans ignore the rumours currently going around and make sure that they apply for a UK tourist visa before travelling to the UK.

The following visitor visa rules currently apply to South Africans visiting the UK:

• Citizens from South Africa are classified by the UK Government as visa nationals and have to apply for a UK visitor visa before travelling to the UK as visitors.
• Currently it takes about 15 working days for a UK visitor visa to be processed.
• South Africans do not need to take a tuberculosis (TB) test for the UK visitor visa.
• It is possible to apply for a long-term visitor visa if you travel to the UK regularly. These visas are valid for six months or for two, five or ten years, but one is only allowed to stay in the UK for a maximum of six months during any given year.
• You will be allowed to enter and leave the UK on multiple occasions, provided that your UK visitor visa is still valid.
• It is advisable that persons who visit the UK for business purposes seek advice in this regard as only certain business activities are allowed on certain types of visitor visas.

For more information, please feel free to contact the affiliate offices of Breytenbachs Immigration Consultants in South Africa. Contact details can be obtained at http://www.bic-immigration.com/ or by sending an email to info@bic-immigration.com.