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Emigration document costs for South Africans: R978 in fees, and the weeks you need to plan

Tips · 2026-10-19 · 10 min read

If your move abroad needs a police clearance, a SAQA verification letter and an unabridged birth certificate, the official South African fees come to R978 on the 2026/27 tariffs: R190 to SAPS, R713 to SAQA and R75 to Home Affairs. The DIRCO apostille is free, and so are certified copies at a police station. The rand amount is small. The real cost is time: these papers take weeks, and one of them goes stale.

What each document costs in rand

Every figure below comes from the issuing office's own page. Where an office publishes no figure, the table says so instead of guessing.

Two blanks matter. The QCTO confirms that a fee applies to its letter but does not print the amount, so ask when you apply. Home Affairs prints the R75 re-issue fee but no turnaround on that page, so order the certificate early rather than last.

The police clearance: R190, and a clock that starts on the issue date

SAPS charges R190 for each PCC application, and the money is not refunded if something goes wrong. Pay in cash at your nearest police station or by electronic transfer into the SAPS account, with the reference "PCC" followed by your initials and surname.

Your application pack is a full set of fingerprints on form SAPS 91(a), taken by SAPS, the completed application form, a certified copy of your ID or passport, a certified marriage certificate if a maiden name applies, and the proof of payment. Check the form and banking details on the police clearance page of the SAPS website on the day you pay.

SAPS puts processing at about 15 working days from the date the complete pack reaches CR & CSM, not counting postal time. Certificates are never emailed. Anything left uncollected for three months after finalisation is destroyed, and you start again with a new R190.

How long a police certificate stays usable

The PCC is the one paper on this list with a shelf life, and three different rules apply to it. The shortest rule that touches your application is the one to plan around.

For New Zealand, apply for the PCC when your lodgement date is close. For Australia the visa side gives you a longer window, but if the certificate also needs an apostille, DIRCO's six-month limit still bites. Medicals carry a similar risk: INZ wants results no more than 3 months old when it receives the application.

SAQA or QCTO: paying to prove your qualification is real

Graduates pay SAQA R713 per verification letter in 2026/27, rising to R742 in 2027/28, on the standard service of 6 to 25 working days. SAQA's own turnaround statement is a minimum of 25 working days, so plan for the long end, not the short one.

Request a quotation by emailing verificationsletter@saqa.org.za with the subject "Verification Letter - Quotation". Requests sent to any other address are not attended to. The rules sit on SAQA's individual verification page, and our walk-through of the SAQA verification letter for overseas work covers the request itself.

Artisans take a different road. DIRCO says trade certificates are verified by the QCTO, and a certificate holder can apply directly to the QCTO for a letter of authentication for emigration (see the QCTO page for learners). If your proof is a trade certificate, read our guide to the QCTO letter for your trade test certificate before you pay anyone.

Birth certificate and certified copies: cheap, and easy to get wrong

Home Affairs charges R75 to re-issue an unabridged birth certificate (the fee is on the Home Affairs birth certificates page). Make sure it is the unabridged one: DIRCO does not accept abridged certificates or laminated documents.

Married applicants need the unabridged marriage certificate from Home Affairs, not the one the marriage officer gave you on the day, because DIRCO refuses that one. We could not confirm the Home Affairs fee for the unabridged marriage certificate on an official page, so ask at the office rather than relying on a figure from a forum.

Certified copies cost nothing at SAPS. Any police station will certify them at any time, as long as you show the original and bring your own photocopies. A Commissioner of Oaths can also certify copies of original documents.

The apostille is free, but the booking costs time

DIRCO legalises documents for free. South Africa, Australia and New Zealand all belong to the Apostille Convention, so papers headed to either country get an Apostille Certificate. The current rules are on DIRCO's legalisation services page.

Walk-ins ended on 1 September 2026. You now book online, with 80 slots a day except Wednesdays, starting at 08:30. Booked clients get same-day service for 5 documents or less, 1 day (24 hours) for 5 to 10, and 2 working days for 11 or more. Courier submissions should allow 3 to 4 weeks. We set out the steps in how DIRCO's apostille booking system works.

South African embassies and consulates abroad cannot issue apostilles, only certificates of authentication. Finish this step before you fly.

A family budget, worked out

Fees are charged per person and per document. Take a couple who each need a PCC, a SAQA letter and a re-issued unabridged birth certificate, plus re-issued unabridged birth certificates for two children. On the 2026/27 SAQA tariff that is R2,106 in official fees. If one partner is an artisan using a QCTO letter instead of SAQA, swap in the QCTO's fee.

Courier charges, photocopies and travel are not on any tariff, so leave room for them too.

The bigger bill that comes after the home paperwork

For many tradespeople the South African fees are small next to the skills assessment that follows. Trades Recognition Australia puts the total cost of its Offshore Skills Assessment Program at up to $5,320 (AUD) for Pathway 1 and $2,020 (AUD) for Pathway 2. Roughly, using the official US dollar rates of 8 October 2026 from the RBA and the SARB, that is about R61,600 and R23,400. Treat it as a rough comparison only: exchange rates change daily.

South Africa is a nominated OSAP country for trades including Carpenter, Chef, Diesel Motor Mechanic, Fitter and Turner, Metal Fabricator and Welder (First Class). Our guide to TRA's offshore skills assessment for South African tradies explains who it covers. If you work with steel, there is a live boilermaker and metal fabricator job in Perth to look at while your papers are in progress.

The order that saves time and money

1. Get the document list first. Check what the employer and the visa ask for before paying any fee.
2. Start the slow letter. Email SAQA for a quotation (a minimum of 25 working days), or apply to the QCTO for your letter of authentication if you are an artisan.
3. Order unabridged certificates. Apply to Home Affairs for the R75 unabridged birth certificate, and the unabridged marriage certificate if you are married.
4. Time the police clearance. Apply once your lodgement date is in sight, so the PCC is inside DIRCO's six-month window and INZ's 6-month rule when you use it.
5. Book one DIRCO slot for the batch. Bring all the originals together; 5 documents or less is processed the same day.
6. Certify copies last. Take the originals and your photocopies to any police station; it costs nothing.
7. Keep a file. Save proof of every payment, every email to SAQA or the QCTO and every reference number.

Common mistakes with South African emigration paperwork

• Taking certified copies or an original diploma to DIRCO. DIRCO authenticates neither. Qualifications are legalised through a verification letter, such as SAQA's.
• Bringing the abridged or laminated certificate. DIRCO refuses both, and the marriage officer's certificate as well. You pay R75 again and lose a booking.
• Applying for the PCC too early. Once it is older than six months, DIRCO will not legalise it and INZ will not take it, and a new one is another R190.
• Sending scanned or copied fingerprints. SAPS does not process them. The prints must be taken in person on form SAPS 91(a).
• Forgetting to collect. Certificates left for three months after finalisation are destroyed.
• Paying someone to "speed it up". The Department of Employment and Labour says no person may charge a work seeker a fee for employment services, and that a request to pay towards recruitment is likely to be a scam. MzansiAbroad does not issue, process or speed up any South African document either.

Frequently asked questions

How much do emigration documents cost in South Africa?

A SAPS Police Clearance Certificate is R190, a SAQA verification letter is R713 on the 2026/27 tariff and a re-issued unabridged birth certificate from Home Affairs is R75, so R978 for all three. The DIRCO apostille and SAPS certified copies are free. The QCTO letter for artisans has a minimum fee that the QCTO does not publish.

Is the DIRCO apostille free?

Yes. DIRCO says its legalisation services are free. You do need an online booking since walk-ins ended on 1 September 2026, and a courier submission should allow 3 to 4 weeks.

How long does a South African police clearance take?

SAPS says about 15 working days from the date all required documents reach its Criminal Record and Crime Scene Management office in Pretoria. Postal time is not included, and SAPS does not email or scan the finished certificate, so plan for collection as well.

How much does the QCTO letter of authentication cost?

The QCTO says a minimum fee is payable for a letter of authentication for emigration, but its page gives no amount. Ask the QCTO for the current fee when you apply, and treat any figure you see elsewhere with caution.

Can I apply for a South African police clearance while living abroad?

Yes. SAPS says people living outside South Africa can have their fingerprints taken at a police station in that country or at the South African Embassy, then send the application directly to CR & CSM in Pretoria. The R190 fee and the same document list apply.

Key takeaways

• Official fees: R190 for a PCC, R713 for a SAQA letter (R742 from 2027/28) and R75 for an unabridged birth certificate.
• The DIRCO apostille and SAPS certified copies are free; the QCTO letter has an unpublished minimum fee.
• Plan for a minimum of 25 working days for SAQA and about 15 working days for the PCC.
• Time the PCC last: DIRCO and INZ both work to a six-month limit.
• One DIRCO booking with 5 documents or less is processed the same day.

#emigration documents #police clearance #saqa #apostille #dirco #south africa