CITIZENSHIP VISA

South African citizenship can be acquired through three main avenues: birth, descent, and naturalization. The process of determining citizenship status may result in the recognition of an existing right to South African citizenship. Individuals who previously held South African citizenship but lost it may have the opportunity to regain their status.

Naturalization is typically an option for individuals who have resided in South Africa for at least five years with a valid permanent residence permit, during which they may have been absent from South Africa for no more than 90 days per year.

It’s important to note that seeking another citizenship, such as South African citizenship, may lead to the automatic loss of a foreign citizenship. However, in certain cases, this can be mitigated by obtaining prior permission from the relevant foreign authorities to retain the original citizenship.

Dual citizenship is permitted in specific scenarios where both countries involved allow it. However, there are ongoing discussions regarding the potential restriction of dual citizenship, with proposals to require dual citizens to choose one citizenship over the other. Currently, there is no universally applicable regulation or legislation on this matter. Consequently, individuals may inadvertently lose their original citizenship when acquiring a new one.