South Africa Austria

Austria Visa Requirements for South Africa Citizens

Q: How much does a Austria visa cost for South Africa citizens?

Schengen short-stay visa: 90 EUR, processing —.

Visa required

South Africa passport holders need a visa for Austria, issued by an embassy or consulate before travel.

Source: Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 listing visa-required and visa-exempt nationalities, consolidated text — EUR-Lex · checked 13 Oct 2026

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Destination

Austria visa options for South Africa citizens

Schengen short-stay visa

Embassy

Fee: 90 EUR
Max stay: 90 days
Extension: Possible

Children aged 6 to 11: €45; under 6: free.

Official application site →

What the Austria visa rules mean for South Africa travellers

South Africa citizens need a visa issued in advance by an embassy or consulate of Austria. Start the application several weeks before departure: you will typically need a passport valid for six months with blank pages, a completed application form, passport photos, a travel itinerary, proof of accommodation and of sufficient funds, and sometimes an invitation letter or bank statements.

The main option is the Schengen short-stay visa, which costs 90 EUR with a processing time of —.

Documents to prepare

Whatever your visa status, Austria applies the same entry conditions to every traveller:

Passport validity: Under the Schengen Borders Code, a third-country national’s travel document must be valid for at least three months after the intended date of departure from the Schengen Member States and must have been issued within t…
Blank passport pages: Your passport needs at least 2 blank pages.
Travel insurance: Under the Visa Code, Schengen visa applicants must prove they hold travel medical insurance valid throughout the Member States for the whole intended stay, with minimum coverage of €30,000 (for a multiple-entry visa, co…
Return or onward ticket: No official source we could read makes a return or onward ticket a condition of entry in itself. Under the Schengen Borders Code (Annex I), the supporting documents border guards may check for tourist or private trips i…

Austria entry rules compared

Austria lets 93 passports in without a visa and requires an embassy visa from 105. South Africa citizens are treated the same way as Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana and Burkina Faso. Overall the South Africa passport ranks #96 in the world with 61 visa-free destinations.

More travel options

Planning a longer trip in Europe? With a South Africa passport you can also visit 2 countries in the region without a visa, including Georgia and Russia.

In the other direction, Austria citizens can visit South Africa visa-free for up to 90 days.

Entry requirements for Austria

Passport validity

10 years

Under the Schengen Borders Code, a third-country national’s travel document must be valid for at least three months after the intended date of departure from the Schengen Member States and must have been issued within the previous 10 years.

Schengen Borders Code (Regulation (EU) 2016/399), consolidated text — EUR-Lex✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Blank passport pages

2 blank pages

Your passport needs at least 2 blank pages.

Visa Code (Regulation (EC) No 810/2009), consolidated text — EUR-Lex✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Travel insurance

Under the Visa Code, Schengen visa applicants must prove they hold travel medical insurance valid throughout the Member States for the whole intended stay, with minimum coverage of €30,000 (for a multiple-entry visa, covering the first intended visit). No official source we could read requires insurance of visa-exempt visitors.

Visa Code (Regulation (EC) No 810/2009), consolidated text — EUR-Lex✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Return or onward ticket

No official requirement

No official source we could read makes a return or onward ticket a condition of entry in itself. Under the Schengen Borders Code (Annex I), the supporting documents border guards may check for tourist or private trips include a return or round-trip ticket.

Schengen Borders Code (Regulation (EU) 2016/399), consolidated text — EUR-Lex✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Proof of funds

The European Commission's table of reference amounts required for the crossing of the external border, fixed by national authorities, gives Austria's minimum amount per day and per person as "on a case-by-case basis".

European Commission — Reference amounts required for the crossing of the external border, fixed by national authorities✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Arrival cards and declarations: EES — Entry/Exit System (biometric registration)

The EU says that at your first border crossing since the Entry/Exit System started, passport control officers will take a photo of your face and/or scan your fingerprints, and your passport will not be stamped. The UK government says there is no cost for EES registration and that you do not need to take any action before you arrive at the border.

UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office — Austria travel advice: entry requirements✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Arrival cards and declarations: ETIAS — European Travel Information and Authorization System

The EU says ETIAS is the new travel authorisation for visa-exempt travellers to enter 30 European countries, that it is not in operation yet and no applications are being collected, and that the EU will announce its start date several months before launch.

ETIAS — Official EU website✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Registration after arrival

24 hours

Anyone who takes accommodation in a dwelling or a lodging establishment must be registered. A guest in a lodging establishment must register immediately, at the latest within 24 hours of arrival. Registration is complete once the establishment has the guest's personal data (for foreign guests also the type, number, issue date and issuing authority of the travel document) and the guest has confirmed it by signature. The duty lies with the guest, but the establishment may make the entries in its guest register. The registration authority and the police may inspect these records at any time on request. A person who takes accommodation in a dwelling must register with the registration authority within three days. People given accommodation in a dwelling for no more than three days are exempt. The Registration Act sets a fine of up to EUR 726, or up to EUR 2,180 for a repeat offence, for its administrative offences.

Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS) — Meldegesetz 1991 (Registration Act), consolidated version✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Overstay penalties

EUR 500

A foreigner staying unlawfully in Austria commits an administrative offence punishable by a fine of EUR 500 to 2,500, or up to two weeks' imprisonment if the fine cannot be collected. A person already finally punished once for this offence faces a fine of EUR 2,500 to 7,500 or up to four weeks' imprisonment. The offence can be dealt with by an on-the-spot penalty order of EUR 500. A stay is lawful if the person entered lawfully and did not exceed the time limits or conditions of the visa or visa-free stay, or the period set by agreement, law or ordinance. An entry ban is issued for at most five years, subject to the law's exceptions. One of the listed grounds is a final penalty for an offence under the Aliens Police Act or the Settlement and Residence Act.

Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS) — Fremdenpolizeigesetz 2005 (Aliens Police Act 2005), consolidated version✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Customs allowances

The EU says that if you enter or leave the EU with €10,000 in cash (or its equivalent in other currencies), you must declare it to customs in the EU country you are entering or leaving.

Your Europe (EU) — travelling with cash✓ Checked 13 Oct 2026

Frequently asked questions

Do South African citizens need a visa for Austria?