How to become a South African citizen by naturalisation

Naturalisation is the process by which a permanent resident becomes a South African citizen. You apply under the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995. In broad terms you must hold permanent residence, you must have been ordinarily resident in South Africa for the five years immediately before the application, without being absent for more than 90 days in any year of that period, you must have knowledge of one of the official languages, you must be of good character, and you must intend to continue living in South Africa. The Minister of Home Affairs has a discretion to grant or refuse a certificate of naturalisation.

Citizenship is the end of the immigration road. Once you are a citizen you can vote, hold a South African passport and identity document, and you no longer need any visa or permit. South Africa allows dual citizenship, but under section 5(1)(h) your existing country must also allow it, or you must renounce that citizenship. The old rule that a South African who took another citizenship lost South African citizenship unless they first applied to retain it no longer applies, after the Constitutional Court's order of 6 May 2025.

The requirements in plain terms

Permanent residence. You must already hold permanent residence. If you do not, start with how to get permanent residence.

Five years of ordinary residence. Ordinary residence means that South Africa is your real home, where you actually live. In most cases Home Affairs counts the five years from the date permanent residence was granted, so check your date carefully. Section 5(3)(b) of the Act says time spent here on a temporary or conditional basis does not count, so years on a work or spousal visa before permanent residence do not count. The permanent residence and citizenship calculator helps with the counting.

No more than 90 days away in any year. Regulation 3(2) of the Citizenship Regulations, as it currently reads, says the five years are those immediately before the application, and that you do not qualify if you were absent from South Africa for more than 90 days in any year of that period. Home Affairs looks at your passport stamps and its own movement records, so count every day abroad, year by year.

Language. You must be able to communicate in one of the official languages to the satisfaction of the Minister. There is no formal examination in the way some countries run one. Home Affairs may ask you to demonstrate it at an interview.

Good character. Criminal convictions, particularly for serious offences, count against you. A South African police clearance is required, and clearances from other countries may be asked for.

Intention to remain. You must intend to continue residing in South Africa. Someone who applies for citizenship and then moves abroad permanently may face questions.

Spouses and children. Section 5(5) of the Act has a separate route for the spouse or surviving spouse of a citizen, but it is not shorter: regulation 5 of the Citizenship Regulations sets its period of ordinary residence at ten years immediately before the application, with the same 90-day absence limit. For most spouses the ordinary five-year route under section 5(1) is quicker. Section 5(4) separately allows a parent or guardian to apply for a certificate for a minor child who is permanently and lawfully resident here.

How the application works, step by step

1. Confirm your eligibility date on the calculator and against your permanent residence permit.
2. Apply for a South African police clearance, and for police clearances from any country where you have lived for twelve months or more since age eighteen in case Home Affairs asks for them again. Requirements on this point are applied inconsistently between offices, so have them ready.
3. Get your movement record. Your passport stamps show your absences. Some people also request a movement record from Home Affairs to confirm the dates.
4. Complete the application form for naturalisation, available from Home Affairs.
5. Submit at a Home Affairs office. Naturalisation applications are made at Home Affairs directly, not through VFS Global. Pay the fee.
6. Attend an interview if called. You may be asked about your residence, your language ability and your intention to stay.
7. Wait for the decision. If granted, you receive a certificate of naturalisation. You then apply for a South African identity document and, if you want one, a passport.

Dual citizenship

This is where most mistakes happen, so it needs its own section.

South Africa allows dual citizenship. Section 5(1)(h) of the Act requires that you are a citizen of a country that allows dual citizenship or, if it does not, that you give the Minister prescribed proof that you have renounced that citizenship. Some other countries do not allow their citizens to hold another citizenship, and that is a question for your home country's law, not South Africa's.

The reverse rule has changed. Section 6(1)(a) of the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995 used to provide that a South African citizen who voluntarily acquired another citizenship lost South African citizenship unless they first obtained permission to retain it. The Supreme Court of Appeal declared that provision unconstitutional in 2023, and the Constitutional Court confirmed the order on 6 May 2025, with effect from 6 October 1995. Home Affairs no longer processes retention applications. For a new citizen this matters if, later, you want to take up a third citizenship: you will not lose South African citizenship by doing so. Our guide to dual citizenship explains the ruling and its effect.

Naturalised citizens can also lose citizenship by deprivation in the circumstances the Act sets out, for example where the certificate was obtained by fraud or misrepresentation.

A worked example

The facts below are illustrative only and are not a real case.

Daniel is from Kenya. He came to South Africa on a critical skills work visa and was granted permanent residence in August six years ago. He has lived in Pretoria throughout, with two short holidays in Kenya and a three-week work trip to Germany in the past year.

He confirms on the calculator that five years of ordinary residence since his permanent residence date passed last August, and that in no year of that period was he abroad for more than 90 days: his busiest year adds up to about five weeks. He gets a South African police clearance and, because his last Kenyan clearance is years old, a new one. He gathers his permanent residence permit, his passport with all the stamps, his lease and municipal accounts for the past five years, his tax returns, and a letter from his employer confirming employment since he arrived.

He submits at his local Home Affairs office. Some months later he is called to an interview, where he is asked about his time in South Africa and speaks English with the official. A while after that he receives his certificate of naturalisation and applies for a South African identity document.

Daniel keeps his Kenyan citizenship, subject to Kenya's own rules. If in future he became a citizen of a third country, he would not lose his South African citizenship, because the retention rule no longer applies after May 2025.

What to do this week

1. Check your permanent residence date and count five years forward.
2. Go through your passport and list every trip abroad in the last five years with dates. Add them up year by year: more than 90 days abroad in any one year disqualifies you.
3. Apply for a South African police clearance. It takes weeks.
4. Gather proof of residence going back five years: leases, bond statements, municipal accounts, tax returns, employer letters, school records for children.
5. Ask Home Affairs for the current form and fee. Requirements change.
6. If you are thinking of acquiring another citizenship in future, note that since May 2025 you no longer need to apply to retain South African citizenship first.

Documents to gather

• Passport or passports covering the last five years, showing all stamps
• Permanent residence permit or certificate
• South African identity document issued to you as a permanent resident
• South African police clearance, and police clearances from other countries lived in for twelve months or more since age eighteen if requested
• Proof of ordinary residence over five years: leases, bond statements, municipal accounts, bank statements, tax returns and employer letters
• Proof of the job or of your income
• Marriage certificate if you are married, and your spouse's identity document if the application relies on the marriage
• Birth certificates of children included in the application
• Medical and radiological reports are not usually required for naturalisation, but keep the ones from your permanent residence application
• Completed application form and passport photographs

A realistic timeline

Home Affairs processing times for naturalisation vary widely and change. Applications have at times taken well over a year. These are broad ranges only.

• Preparation: one to three months.
• Decision after submission: many months to a couple of years.
• Identity document after the certificate: weeks to months.

If you have travel plans that depend on a South African passport, do not build them around a guessed date.

Common mistakes and what they cost

• Miscounting the five years. Applying early leads to a refusal and a lost fee.
• Spending more than 90 days abroad in a year within the five years before applying. Regulation 3 says you then do not qualify, so wait until that year falls outside the five-year window.
• Assuming naturalisation is automatic after five years. It is a discretionary grant.
• Relying on old advice about retention. Since May 2025 you no longer need permission to retain South African citizenship before taking another one, but your other country's rules still apply.
• Risking withdrawal of permanent residence by being absent for three years or more before applying.
• Misstatements on the form. Deprivation of citizenship for fraud or misrepresentation is possible even years later.

If you cannot afford an attorney

Naturalisation is applied for directly at a Home Affairs office and most people do it themselves. The Department of Home Affairs contact centre answers questions on the form, the fee and the status of an application. University law clinics give free advice on citizenship questions and some have handled citizenship litigation. Lawyers for Human Rights has a long record on citizenship and statelessness matters and assists refugees and asylum seekers, as does the Scalabrini Centre. If you are ever detained for deportation while your status is in question, Legal Aid South Africa on 0800 110 110 helps in detention and deportation matters. See legal aid and what immigration costs.

Frequently asked questions

People ask whether they lose their original citizenship. South Africa allows dual citizenship, but if your home country does not, section 5(1)(h) requires you to renounce that citizenship before you can naturalise. They ask whether their children become citizens. A child born in South Africa to a permanent resident parent is generally a citizen by birth, and children can be included in a parent's naturalisation application. See is my child born in South Africa a South African citizen. They ask whether there is a language test. There is no formal examination, but you must be able to communicate in an official language and may be asked to show it. They ask whether a criminal record blocks the application. Serious convictions usually do, and you should get advice before applying if you have one.