Visitor visa · applying from South Africa
Canada visitor visa processing time from South Africa
A visitor visa lets you come to Canada for a holiday, to see family or for a short business trip, if your passport needs one.
Current processing time
178 days
about 6 months
IRCC figure, update of October 21, 2026. Check IRCC's tool
If you apply today
If IRCC keeps this pace, 8 in 10 applications sent today would be decided by about April 2027.
In plain English
- 8 in 10 visitor visa applications from South Africa were decided within 178 days, counted from the day IRCC had a complete application.
- Waits are steady. The figure was 169 days in July.
- The wait from South Africa is longer than in 96% of the other 169 countries IRCC lists. The typical (middle) country's figure is 38 days.
- Since 2018, the figure has ranged from 17 days (September 2018) to 525 days (March 2025).
Is it getting faster or slower?
IRCC's figure for visitor visa applications from South Africa at each update.
In days. Each point is an IRCC update. Lower means a shorter wait.
Every published figure
| IRCC update | Figure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| October 21, 2026 | 178 days | −7 days |
| October 14, 2026 | 185 days | +22 days |
| October 7, 2026 | 163 days | +46 days |
| October 1, 2026 | 117 days | −63 days |
| September 22, 2026 | 180 days | −177 days |
| August 19, 2026 | 357 days | +188 days |
| July 22, 2026 | 169 days | +33 days |
| July 7, 2026 | 136 days | −389 days |
| March 12, 2025 | 525 days | +293 days |
| May 28, 2024 | 232 days | +101 days |
| October 31, 2023 | 131 days | +11 days |
| October 24, 2023 | 120 days | +51 days |
| September 6, 2022 | 69 days | +8 days |
| August 30, 2022 | 61 days | +1 day |
| August 23, 2022 | 60 days | +2 days |
| August 16, 2022 | 58 days | +2 days |
| August 9, 2022 | 56 days | +2 days |
| August 2, 2022 | 54 days | +3 days |
| July 26, 2022 | 51 days | +3 days |
| July 19, 2022 | 48 days | −1 day |
| July 12, 2022 | 49 days | +4 days |
| June 28, 2022 | 45 days | +1 day |
| June 21, 2022 | 44 days | +3 days |
| June 15, 2022 | 41 days | +2 days |
| June 8, 2022 | 39 days | +1 day |
| June 1, 2022 | 38 days | +3 days |
| May 24, 2022 | 35 days | +1 day |
| May 17, 2022 | 34 days | +5 days |
| May 11, 2022 | 29 days | −35 days |
| March 22, 2022 | 64 days | −18 days |
| March 16, 2022 | 82 days | +3 days |
| March 8, 2022 | 79 days | +14 days |
| March 1, 2022 | 65 days | −15 days |
| February 22, 2022 | 80 days | −1 day |
| February 16, 2022 | 81 days | −26 days |
| February 8, 2022 | 107 days | −10 days |
| February 1, 2022 | 117 days | −8 days |
| January 25, 2022 | 125 days | +27 days |
| January 18, 2022 | 98 days | +16 days |
| February 2, 2021 | 82 days | +65 days |
| September 4, 2018 | 17 days | first figure |
How South Africa compares
Shorter bars mean shorter waits. The typical country is the middle of all 170 countries with a figure.
What does this number mean?
It looks back, not forward
IRCC's figure is how long it took to decide 8 in 10 of the applications of this kind that it finished recently. The other 2 in 10 took longer.
The clock starts with a complete application
It counts from the day IRCC had a complete application to the day it made a decision.
It changes often
IRCC revises the figure regularly, usually every week. A single application can be faster or slower.
Common questions
How long does a visitor visa application from South Africa take?
IRCC's latest figure, from October 21, 2026, is 178 days (about 6 months). That means 8 in 10 recent visitor visa applications from South Africa were decided within that time. Some were faster and some took longer.
Is the wait from South Africa getting shorter?
Waits are steady. The figure was 169 days in July.
How does South Africa compare with other countries?
The wait from South Africa is longer than in 96% of the other 169 countries IRCC lists. The typical (middle) country's figure is 38 days. The shortest right now is Palestine (Gaza) (1 day) and the longest is Eswatini (804 days).
Is this an official government website?
No. Canada Visa Wait is an independent site and is not affiliated with the Government of Canada. The figures are IRCC's own. Before you rely on a date, check IRCC's official processing-times tool.