Azerbaijan visa requirements for South Africans
Travel and visa requirements
Azerbaijani Visa is not required for South Africans
Stay Duration: 30 days
Entry Requirements
- South Africans looking to visit Azerbaijan for no more than 30 days can do so on an E-visa, obtained before arrival.
- Intending visitors must have a valid passport to be presented on arrival.
- An E-visa which will be valid for 90 days is 20 US Dollars, with a service charge of 3 US dollars and 20 USD state fee for the electronic visa.
- The validity period of the passport or other travel documents should be at least 3 months more than the validity period of the electronic visa planned to be issued.
- Visitors can extend their stay on their E-visa.
- E-visa does not give a right to foreigners and stateless persons to engage in paid labour activity in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
- Intending visitors can travel to Azerbaijan from Cape Town or Johannesburg with Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad, El Al, Azerbaijan and Turkish Airlines.
- Depending on what airline a visitor travels with, the shortest flight time (Qatar Airways) is 12 hours, 30 minutes, and the longest (Saudia, connecting to Azerbaijan Airlines) is 16 hours, 50 minutes.
- Visitors travelling with chargeable devices should know Azerbaijan uses a type C and F sockets and power plugs. In Azerbaijan, the standard voltage is 220 V and a 50 Hz frequency.
- The Azerbaijani Manat, which is Azerbaijan’s official currency, comes in 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 denominations and coins (which will come in handy when moving around the more rural parts of Azerbaijan) are issued in 1, 3, 5, 10, 20 and 50 denominations. While there are ATMs and options for credit and debit cards, it is advisable to have small change and coins when patronizing smaller establishments.
- Foreign currencies can be converted either before or upon arrival, there are also exchange offices, banks and other authorized places where money can be exchanged.
- At this time, the exchange is at 1 ZAR= 0.12 AZM, 1 USD= 1.71 AZM, 1 EUR= 1.91 AZM, depending on what currency visitors decide to carry with them, although Euros and Dollars are often easier to exchange.
- Azerbaijan has a continental climate with warm summers and extremely cold, dry winters.
- Although all seasons in Azerbaijan possess their unique allure, the best time to visit is from April to June and September to October, when the weather is more welcoming.
- Because Azerbaijan’s uses the Azerbaijan standard time (AZT) GMT+4, it is two hours ahead of South Africa.
- Muslims make up 96.9% of religious people in Azerbaijan, while the rest of the population are either of a different faith or are non-religious.
- Buses, Taxis, Metro and Uber are the most used and cheapest means of getting around in Azerbaijan.
- Azerbaijani and Azeri are widely spoken in Azerbaijan, although English and Russian are used in most official spaces. Visitors might need to learn a few modern Turkish phrases to help them navigate rural spaces in Azerbaijan.
- Azerbaijan is rich with culture, natural beauty, historical artefacts, and Azerbaijanis appreciate respect, cordiality and courtesy.