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RetirementRetiring in South Africa: Visa, Cost and Where to Live
South Africa's Retired Person's Visa needs either a pension, irrevocable annuity or retirement account that pays at least R37,000 a month for the rest of your life (the current Home Affairs figure), or assets that realise that amount each month. There is no minimum age. Typical monthly costs for a single person living comfortably run from around R9,000 to R22,000 for rent plus R2,500 to R6,000 or more for private medical aid, and popular places to settle include Cape Town, the Garden Route, Hermanus and the KwaZulu-Natal coast.
South Africa draws a steady stream of foreign retirees with its climate, coastline and cost of living. Here is what the visa requires, what retirement realistically costs and where people tend to settle, followed by the questions that come up once you are here: medical aid in later life, retirement villages and frail care, getting your pension income paid in, and wills across two countries.
The retired person's visa
South Africa's route for retirees is the Retired Person's Visa, a temporary residence visa aimed specifically at people who can support themselves without working locally. The Immigration Act sets no minimum age. What it asks is that you intend to retire in South Africa and can meet the financial test below.
The Act gives two routes. One is the right to a pension, irrevocable annuity or retirement account that will pay you a set monthly minimum from your country of origin for the rest of your life. The other is a minimum net worth, which the regulations define as a combination of assets that realise that monthly amount.
Home Affairs currently lists R37,000 a month, but the Minister can change the figure by notice in the Government Gazette, so confirm it with your nearest South African mission before you apply. Rental and investment income do not fit the pension route, so if you are relying on them, ask the mission how it wants them shown.
Practical tip: if your income comes from multiple sources, say a UK state pension plus a private annuity plus rental income from a property back home, get a letter from each provider confirming the amount and how often it is paid. The regulations ask for originals, or copies authenticated by the body that issued them, and anything not in English or another official South African language needs a translation certified by a sworn translator.
The visa allows a seasonal or continuous stay, which can suit people who split the year between two countries, and a spouse and dependent children who come with you may be issued an appropriate visa of their own. On its own it does not let you work, although the Director-General can authorise a holder to work on conditions he or she sets.
If you want the winters only, the visa can be seasonal. Our guide to snowbirds in South Africa compares it with a 90-day visit and a visitor extension.
Documents and process
- Proof of pension or net worth: letters or statements showing the monthly pension or annuity payment, or evidence of the assets that make up your net worth and what they realise each month.
- Police clearance certificate from each country where you have lived for 12 months or longer since turning 18, no more than six months old when you submit it.
- Medical and radiological reports: the regulations ask for both. Ministerial Immigration Directive 10 of 2026, published in the Gazette on 17 July 2026, waived the medical report for visa and permanent residence applications. It says nothing about the radiological report (a radiologist's report showing no signs of active tuberculosis, no more than six months old), so check with VFS Global or your nearest mission whether you still need one.
- Valid passport with at least two unused pages, valid for at least 30 days after the end of your intended stay.
- Proof of medical cover, which Home Affairs lists among the documents for this visa.
Applications go through VFS Global or a South African embassy or consulate in the country where you live. Home Affairs lists a turnaround time of 120 working days for a retired person visa, but only for applications lodged inside South Africa, so ask your mission or VFS centre what to expect and start well before your intended move date. The Home Affairs fee is R425 (August 2026), and your VFS centre or mission may add its own charges.
The visa can run for up to four years at a time and can be renewed. Retirees can also apply directly for permanent residence under section 27(e) of the Immigration Act, which has its own pension-or-net-worth test and no stated minimum period of prior residence. Our permanent residence guide covers the categories, and an immigration professional can advise which route suits you.
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What retirement costs
For retirees drawing income in dollars, pounds or euros, South Africa is comparatively inexpensive. With the rand trading around R16.5 to the US dollar (early October 2026), monthly budgets that would be tight in the UK or US tend to go considerably further, particularly on housing, domestic help and dining out. Rent is usually the largest line item, and it varies enormously by city and neighbourhood.
| Expense | Typical monthly range (single person, comfortable) |
|---|---|
| Rent (1–2 bed, mid-range suburb) | R9,000 – R22,000 |
| Medical aid (private health cover) | R2,500 – R6,000+ |
| Groceries | R3,500 – R6,000 |
| Utilities & backup power | R1,200 – R2,500 |
| Transport (car costs or ride-hailing) | R1,500 – R4,000 |
Treat these as rough ranges rather than quotes. Rent varies most, and the sought-after seaside suburbs sit at the upper end or above: one-bedroom flats advertised in Sea Point on Property24 in mid-October 2026 were asking roughly R16,000 to R23,000 a month. Our Cape Town and Durban cost of living guides go city by city.
Healthcare deserves particular attention. South Africa's public hospitals are stretched, and private medical aid is the usual way to pay for private care, so it needs proper budgeting. Joining a scheme in retirement can also cost more than the headline price, as the next section explains.
Our comparison of the best medical aid in South Africa breaks down what the major schemes charge, which is worth reading before you commit to a plan.
Medical aid when you join later in life
Open medical schemes must accept you whatever your age or health, and on any one plan they may vary contributions only by income and number of dependants. Where age does cost you is the late-joiner penalty. A scheme may add one if you join at 35 or older, unless you have been on a South African scheme since before 1 April 2001 without a break of more than three months.
How big the penalty can be depends on how many years you have gone without cover since turning 35. The regulations take your age when you apply, subtract 35, then subtract any years of creditable cover you can prove. The result puts you in a band, and the band caps what the scheme can add to your share of the contribution.
| Years without cover after 35 | Maximum penalty |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 years | 5% of the contribution |
| 5 to 14 years | 25% of the contribution |
| 15 to 24 years | 50% of the contribution |
| 25 years or more | 75% of the contribution |
Someone joining at 66 with no history on a South African scheme comes out at 31 years, which is the top band. Cover held abroad generally does not count, though if you later produce proof of years that do, the scheme has to recalculate. The penalty is a loading on your monthly contribution rather than a one-off charge, and it can follow you to another scheme, so ask the scheme to confirm your band in writing before you join.
Waiting periods come on top. A scheme can stop you claiming for up to three months after you join, and for up to 12 months on conditions you already have. If you arrive without South African cover, work out how you would pay for treatment during those months. Our guide to healthcare and medical aid explains how schemes and plans work, and how local medical aid compares with international health insurance.
Where retirees settle
Cape Town and the Atlantic Seaboard / Southern Suburbs
The most popular choice by a clear margin: mountain and ocean scenery, an established international community, good private healthcare, and a mild Mediterranean-style climate. It is also the most expensive part of the country to live in, particularly along the Atlantic Seaboard.
The Garden Route (Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, George)
A quieter alternative with dramatic coastal and forest scenery, smaller expat communities, and noticeably lower property prices than Cape Town, at the cost of fewer flight connections and a smaller pool of specialist medical services. If you would rather buy than rent, foreigners can generally buy residential property in South Africa, and our guide to buying property as a foreigner covers how financing and transfer costs work. Our guide to moving to the Garden Route compares Knysna and Plettenberg Bay in more detail, from house prices to healthcare and flights from George.
Hermanus and the Overberg
An hour and a half from Cape Town, known for whale watching season and a slower pace, popular with retirees who want coastal living without big-city costs.
KwaZulu-Natal coast (Ballito, Umhlanga)
Warmer year-round climate than the Cape, strong golf and beach culture, and generally lower cost of living than Cape Town, with Durban's airport and private hospitals within easy reach.
Some retirees end up weighing South Africa against Mauritius, about four hours' flight from Johannesburg. Our sister site covers the Mauritius retired non-citizen permit, costs and tax in Retiring in Mauritius.
Retirement villages, life rights and frail care
Many retirees eventually move into a retirement village or estate, often one with a care centre on site. In law these are housing development schemes for retired persons, and the Housing Development Schemes for Retired Persons Act of 1988 governs how units in them are sold. The Act treats anyone aged 50 or over as retired, and once units have been sold, only retired people and their spouses may live in them unless every holder agrees otherwise in writing.
Ways to buy in
Units are usually sold in one of three forms. Sectional title gives you ownership of the unit itself, and share block gives you shares in the company that owns the scheme, together with the right to use a unit. A life right works differently. You pay a lump sum, often structured as a loan to the developer, and in return you may live in the unit for the rest of your life, but you never own it and cannot claim transfer of it. Whether any of that money comes back to you or your estate when you leave or die is settled by the contract, not by the Act, and terms differ a good deal between schemes.
The Act says what a developer's contract has to contain. Among other things, it must set out:
- What legal form your interest takes, and whether it can be registered.
- The price, how the levy is worked out, and an estimate of the levy for the next two years.
- The facilities and services, whether any of them provide care for frail residents, and when they will be ready.
- How the scheme will be managed.
Buyers have some protection too. A developer may not take your money until an architect or quantity surveyor has certified that the scheme is built and ready to use, and, for a life right, until the title deed has been endorsed, unless the money is held in an attorney's or estate agent's trust account or covered by a guarantee. A life right also gives you the same rights as a lease registered against the title deed, ranking ahead of other rights over the land.
Frail care
Frail care means round-the-clock care for someone who can no longer look after themselves because of a physical or mental condition. Under the Older Persons Act, any building used to house older people and give them a 24-hour service has to be registered before it can operate. A care centre on the estate does not by itself mean a bed will be free when you need one, or that its cost is covered by your levy. Ask how many beds there are, who gets priority, what a bed costs each month, and what happens if the centre is full.
Buying in from abroad
The Act sets no nationality test, so foreign retirees can buy in on the same footing as anyone else, subject to each scheme's own rules. A unit does not give you a right to live in South Africa, though, so you still need the visa described above. If you pay with money brought in from abroad, keep the transfer records, for the reasons covered in the banking section below. Our guide to buying property as a foreigner explains how sectional title and transfer costs work.
Banking and getting your income paid in
A South African account makes it far simpler to pay rent, levies and medical aid. Banks decide which account you can open by where you live, not by your passport. While your home is still abroad, the usual route is a non-resident account. Once you live here on a retired person's visa, you would normally open a resident account, which some banks call a temporary resident account, with your passport, your visa and proof of your South African address. Our guide to opening a bank account as a foreigner lists the documents.
When you arrive to stay, expect the bank to ask whether you hold assets abroad. The Reserve Bank's rules require foreign nationals who are staying, rather than visiting, to declare them in writing. Exchange control is mostly about money leaving South Africa rather than coming in, but each transfer still goes through the bank's checks on where the money came from. Keep the paperwork for pension payments, sale proceeds and savings you bring over, because banks may let foreign nationals send money they brought in back out later if they can show how it first came in.
Your pensions themselves stay where they are: what comes to South Africa is the income they pay. The UK State Pension can be paid into a bank in the country you live in, every four or 13 weeks, and is usually converted into the local currency after a 0.39% conversion charge. The Department for Work and Pensions may also send you a life certificate to confirm you are still eligible. It has to be signed by a witness, and payments may be suspended if you do not send it back. Workplace and private pensions, and state pensions from other countries, set their own rules, so ask each payer whether it will pay into a South African account or only into one at home. If some will not, keeping an account in your home country gives that income somewhere to land.
Open and verify your account before the first payment is due, then send a small test transfer to check the details. Our guide to moving money to South Africa covers transfers, exchange rates and exchange control.
Tax and financial planning
Spend enough time in South Africa and you may become a tax resident under SARS's rules, either through the ordinarily-resident test or the physical-presence test (broadly, more than 91 days in the current year and each of the previous five, and more than 915 days total across those five years). Tax residents are taxed on worldwide income, though South Africa's double-tax agreements with many countries, along with specific exemptions, generally prevent the same income being taxed twice.
Pension income, annuities and investment income are all treated differently depending on their source and structure, so it is worth talking to a cross-border tax adviser before the move, not after.
If part of your income will be the UK State Pension, bear in mind that it will not go up each year while you live in South Africa. The UK pays the yearly increase only to pensioners living in the countries on this gov.uk list, and South Africa is not one of them. If you are retiring from Britain, our guide for UK expats covers how to claim your State Pension from South Africa and what leaving means for your NHS care.
Further reading: Retiring to South Africa from the UK on Rory Phillips Wealth (the founder’s own planning practice) explains the pension, tax and currency questions a UK retiree faces, in plain English and without advice.
Wills and estates in two countries
If you die owning anything in South Africa, from a bank account to a flat, the estate has to be reported to the Master of the High Court, even if you were living abroad at the time. The estate is frozen at death: nobody can draw from your accounts or deal with your assets here without the Master's authority, which normally means the Master issuing letters of executorship to an executor. If there is no valid will, your South African assets pass under the Intestate Succession Act, whatever you might have wanted.
A will made abroad can still be valid. Section 3bis of the Wills Act accepts a will whose form follows the law of the place where it was signed, or of the country where you were domiciled or habitually resident when you signed it or when you died. Even so, the Master still has to accept the will and authorise someone to act here, and an executor appointed abroad cannot simply step in and deal with South African assets. For that reason, people with assets in both countries often have a separate South African will that covers only their South African assets, alongside a will at home for everything else.
Two wills only work if they are drafted with each other in mind. Each should say which assets it covers, and neither should revoke the other: the usual clause in a new will cancelling all earlier wills could wipe out the South African one by accident. A South African will has to be signed at the end by you in front of two witnesses aged 14 or over, who then sign in front of you and of each other, and you sign every other page as well. A witness, or a witness's spouse, can lose whatever the will leaves them, and being named as executor counts as a benefit, so ask people with no interest in the will to witness it.
Your executor reports to the Master, settles debts and taxes, and passes on what is left. Choose someone who can act in South Africa, or who can appoint someone here who will. The Master's office itself suggests having a will drawn up by an expert such as an attorney.
Tax runs on separate rules. SARS charges estate duty on the worldwide estate of anyone ordinarily resident in South Africa, and on the South African property of non-residents. After deductions, the first R3.5 million is not taxed, and what remains is taxed at 20% on the first R30 million and 25% above that. The UK and South Africa have an estate tax treaty, and our guide for UK expats explains how UK Inheritance Tax now depends on long-term residence. Estates in two countries are specialist work, so it is worth having lawyers in both look at the two wills together.
Frequently asked questions
What is the income requirement for South Africa's Retired Person's Visa?
You must show either a pension, irrevocable annuity or retirement account from your country of origin that will pay a set monthly minimum for the rest of your life, or a net worth made up of assets that realise that amount each month. Home Affairs currently lists R37,000 a month, but the Minister can change it, so confirm the figure before you apply. There is no minimum age, but you must intend to retire in South Africa.
How much does it cost to retire in South Africa?
For a single person living comfortably, typical monthly costs include roughly R9,000 to R22,000 for rent in a mid-range suburb, R2,500 to R6,000 or more for private medical aid, R3,500 to R6,000 for groceries, R1,200 to R2,500 for utilities and backup power, and R1,500 to R4,000 for transport. For retirees drawing income in dollars, pounds or euros, South Africa is comparatively inexpensive.
Where do most foreign retirees settle in South Africa?
Cape Town and the Atlantic Seaboard or Southern Suburbs are the most popular choice, though also the most expensive. Other popular areas include the Garden Route towns of Knysna, Plettenberg Bay and George for lower property prices, Hermanus and the Overberg for a slower pace near Cape Town, and the KwaZulu-Natal coast around Ballito and Umhlanga for a warmer climate and lower cost of living.
Will I have to pay tax in South Africa as a retiree?
You may become a South African tax resident under SARS's ordinarily-resident test or physical-presence test, broadly more than 91 days in the current year and each of the previous five, and more than 915 days total across those five years. Tax residents are taxed on worldwide income, though double-tax agreements and specific exemptions generally prevent the same income being taxed twice. A cross-border tax adviser is recommended before the move.
How much does the Retired Person's Visa cost and how long does it take?
Home Affairs lists a fee of R425 for the retired person visa (August 2026) and a turnaround time of 120 working days, which applies only to applications lodged inside South Africa. For an application made abroad, ask your mission or VFS centre what to expect. The visa can run for up to four years at a time and can be renewed.
Is there a medical aid late-joiner penalty if I join after retiring?
There can be. A scheme may add a late-joiner penalty for anyone who joins at 35 or older. The maximum depends on how many years you have gone without South African scheme cover since turning 35, rising to 75% of your contribution at 25 years or more, so someone joining at 66 with no local cover history falls in the top band. Waiting periods of up to three months in general, and up to 12 months for conditions you already have, can apply as well.
Can a foreigner buy into a retirement village in South Africa?
Generally, yes. The Housing Development Schemes for Retired Persons Act sets no nationality test, and units are sold as sectional title, share block or a life right. A life right lets you live in the unit for the rest of your life in return for a lump sum, but you never own it, and whether any of the money comes back to you or your estate depends on the contract. Buying in does not give you a right to live in South Africa, so you still need a visa.
Can my pension be paid into a South African bank account?
The pension itself stays where it is, and what comes to South Africa is the income it pays. The UK State Pension can be paid into a bank in the country you live in, usually converted into the local currency after a 0.39% conversion charge. Other pensions set their own rules, so ask each payer whether it will pay into a South African account.
Do I need a South African will if I already have one at home?
Not by law, because South Africa can accept a will that follows the law of the place where it was signed or where you lived. People with assets here often make a separate South African will for them anyway, because the Master of the High Court has to accept the will and appoint an executor before anything in South Africa can be released. The two wills need drafting together so that neither cancels the other.
Sources, checked 28 October 2026
The sections on medical aid, retirement villages, banking and wills rest on the Acts themselves and on official pages. All links were opened on 28 October 2026.
- Medical Schemes Act regulations, regulation 13: premium penalties for persons joining late in life (Acts Online): the four penalty bands, the formula for working out your band, recalculation when proof of cover turns up, and penalties carrying over to a new scheme.
- Frequently asked questions (Council for Medical Schemes): who counts as a late joiner, the 1 April 2001 cut-off, waiting periods of up to three and 12 months, and contributions varying only by income and dependants.
- Housing Development Schemes for Retired Persons Act, 1988 (Acts Online): the definition of a retired person and of a right of occupation (life right), what a developer's contract must contain (section 4), life rights ranking as a registered lease (section 4A), when a developer may take payment (section 6), and who may live in a scheme (section 7).
- Older Persons Act, 2006 (Acts Online): the definitions of a frail older person and a residential facility, and registration of residential facilities (section 18).
- State Pension if you retire abroad (Department for Work and Pensions): payment into a bank in the country you live in, conversion into local currency, the 0.39% conversion charge and payment every 4 or 13 weeks.
- State Pension if you retire abroad: report a change in your circumstances (Department for Work and Pensions): life certificates, the witness, and payments being suspended if the form is not returned.
- Currency and Exchanges Manual for Authorised Dealers (South African Reserve Bank): section B.5 on foreign nationals declaring foreign assets on arrival and sending introduced capital back out.
- Deceased estates (Master of the High Court): estates frozen at death, reporting the estate of someone who died abroad leaving property in South Africa, intestate succession, and the suggestion to have a will drawn up by an expert.
- Wills Act, 1953 (Acts Online): competent witnesses (section 1), how a will must be signed and witnessed (section 2), wills made under the law of another country (section 3bis), and witnesses and executors who benefit (section 4A).
- Estate Duty (SARS): who estate duty applies to, the R3.5 million abatement, and the 20% and 25% rates.
General information only, not immigration/tax/legal/financial advice: confirm current rules and consult a qualified professional.