Visa Status · unofficial · data from the U.S. Department of State
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How many U.S. visas were issued to people from South Africa, and how that changed.
Visas issued to people from South Africa · February 2026
6,023
That is 732 more than in January 2026 (5,291) — +13.8%.
Quick view · February 2026
+13.8% vs January 2026 (5,291)-28.5% vs February 2025 (8,428)
All published months together: 407,882
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South Africa · All visa categories · One total per month
- Dec 20253,232
- Jan 20265,291
- Feb 20266,023
Dec 2025
3,23222% of selected
Jan 2026
5,29136% of selected
Feb 2026
6,02341% of selected
- Jan 2026 is 2,059 (63.7%) higher than Dec 2025.
- Feb 2026 is 2,791 (86.4%) higher than Dec 2025.
View as table
| Dec 2025 | Jan 2026 | Feb 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total issued | 3,232 | 5,291 | 6,023 |
| Total | 3,232 | 5,291 | 6,023 |
Total visas issued
3,277
Latest 12 months · South Africa · June
By month · latest 12 months
Choose a month to filterMar'25Apr'25May'25Jun'25Jul'25Aug'25Sep'25Oct'25Nov'25Dec'25Jan'26Feb'26
Top visa types
Select one to look at only that visa type
Which visa groups changed? February 2026 compared with January 2026
Visa types gathered by purpose: students, workers, visitors and more.
| Visa group | February 2026 | January 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary workers | 3,397 | 1,994 | +70.4%+1,403 |
| Visitors | 1,946 | 2,621 | -25.8%−675 |
| Transit and crew | 393 | 354 | +11.0%+39 |
| Exchange visitors | 188 | 213 | -11.7%−25 |
| Diplomats and international organizations | 71 | 30 | +136.7%+41 |
| Students | 21 | 76 | -72.4%−55 |
| Fiancé(e)s and their children | 4 | 1 | +300.0%+3 |
| Other | 3 | 2 | +50.0%+1 |
Which visa types changed? February 2026 compared with January 2026
Tap a visa type to see only that one.
| Visa type | February 2026 | January 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| H2A | 3,026 | 1,685 | +79.6%+1,341 |
| B1/B2 | 1,896 | 2,542 | -25.4%−646 |
| C1/D | 392 | 348 | +12.6%+44 |
| J1 | 188 | 207 | -9.2%−19 |
| H4 | 123 | 72 | +70.8%+51 |
| H2B | 80 | 57 | +40.4%+23 |
| L1 | 56 | 59 | -5.1%−3 |
| B1 | 50 | 77 | -35.1%−27 |
| L2 | 47 | 50 | -6.0%−3 |
| A2 | 38 | 8 | +375.0%+30 |
| F1 | 20 | 73 | -72.6%−53 |
| P1 | 16 | 11 | +45.5%+5 |
| G2 | 16 | 5 | +220.0%+11 |
| O2 | 14 | 15 | -6.7%−1 |
| H1B | 14 | 14 | +0.0%+0 |
| O1 | 10 | 13 | -23.1%−3 |
| G4 | 8 | 5 | +60.0%+3 |
| G1 | 7 | 12 | -41.7%−5 |
| R1 | 4 | 4 | +0.0%+0 |
| K1 | 4 | 1 | +300.0%+3 |
| I | 3 | 2 | +50.0%+1 |
| R2 | 2 | 2 | +0.0%+0 |
| O3 | 1 | 9 | -88.9%−8 |
| C1 | 1 | 4 | -75.0%−3 |
| M1 | 1 | 2 | -50.0%−1 |
| H3 | 1 | 1 | +0.0%+0 |
| A1 | 1 | 0 | new+1 |
| A3 | 1 | 0 | new+1 |
| E2 | 1 | 0 | new+1 |
| E3D | 1 | 0 | new+1 |
| Q1 | 1 | 0 | new+1 |
| J2 | 0 | 6 | -100.0%−6 |
| B2 | 0 | 2 | -100.0%−2 |
| C3 | 0 | 2 | -100.0%−2 |
| E3 | 0 | 1 | -100.0%−1 |
| F2 | 0 | 1 | -100.0%−1 |
| P4 | 0 | 1 | -100.0%−1 |
South Africa: month by month, 2026 compared with 2025
compared with
- 202562,647
- 202611,314
Month by month
| Month | 2025 | 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6,376 | 5,291 | -17.0% |
| February | 8,428 | 6,023 | -28.5% |
| March | 9,911 | – | – |
| April | 6,395 | – | – |
| May | 4,788 | – | – |
| June | 3,277 | – | – |
| July | 4,005 | – | – |
| August | 3,970 | – | – |
| September | 4,308 | – | – |
| October | 4,800 | – | – |
| November | 3,157 | – | – |
| December | 3,232 | – | – |
When is it busy? South Africa
Busiest month: March (14.0% of a typical year). Quietest: December (4.4%). An even year would be 8.3% a month.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Average of 7 full years (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025). Each bar is that month's share of the year's total. Years with missing months are left out. It shows when visas are issued, not when people apply.
South Africa: all published months
“partial” means fewer than 12 months have been published for that period.
View as table
| Year | Issuances |
|---|---|
| 2018 partial | 14,246 |
| 2019 | 66,995 |
| 2020 | 21,507 |
| 2021 | 16,211 |
| 2022 | 62,345 |
| 2023 | 77,656 |
| 2024 | 74,961 |
| 2025 | 62,647 |
| 2026 partial | 11,314 |