MOFA to protest South African ETA system designation – Taipei Times
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Thu, Jul 30, 2026 page2
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MOFA to protest South African ETA system designation
- Staff writer, with CNA
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is to lodge a formal protest with the South African government to correct the designation of Taiwan as “Taiwan, China” in the nation’s electronic travel authorization (ETA) system, it said on Tuesday.
Although Taiwanese travelers are not yet eligible to use the ETA system, Central News Agency (CNA) reported that the drop-down menu for the “Passport country of issue” field on the system’s Web site includes Taiwan, but incorrectly lists it as “Taiwan, China.”
The ministry has often railed against drop-down menus that use “Taiwan, China,” saying that it represents a downgrade of Taiwan’s status and falsely implies that Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China.
South Africa’s electronic travel authorization system is pictured in an undated photograph.
South Africa introduced the ETA system in October last year as part of the Department of Home Affairs’ phased digital transformation.
At present, the system is available only to travelers from China, India, Indonesia and Mexico entering through selected South African airports, but South Africa plans to expand the system to additional tourists and business travelers.
Responding to CNA’s inquiry, the ministry said that Taiwanese nationals traveling to South Africa must still apply for a physical visa through the Liaison Office of South Africa in Taiwan, the country’s de facto embassy in Taipei.
Nevertheless, the ministry said it has instructed Taiwan’s representative office in Pretoria to submit a formal protest to the South African government and request that the designation be corrected.
A similar dispute with South Korea occurred last year when Seoul’s online electronic arrival card system initially listed Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in drop-down menus for the “place of departure” and “next destination” fields.
South Korea later removed the “last point of departure” and “next destination” fields from the system to resolve the naming dispute.
A positive resolution might not be as easily attainable this time as relations with South Africa remain frayed after Pretoria in late 2024 tried to reclassify the representative office there as a “trade office” and move it to Johannesburg, the country’s commercial capital.
The office is still in Pretoria and functioning normally, but South Africa renamed it as the Taipei Commercial Office on the Web site of its Department of International Relations and Cooperation. No talks have been held to resolve the issue.
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