Health Alert: Lockdown Reduction to Level 3 on June 1, 2020 – U.S. Embassy Pretoria, South Africa (May 26, 2020)
Location: South Africa
Event: The South African Department of Health confirmed 23,615 cases of COVID-19 within its borders.
On May 24, 2020, the government of South Africa announced the lockdown alert level for South Africa will be lowered to level 3 with effect on June 1, 2020.
However, some areas, designated as “coronavirus hotspots” will have a “differentiated approach.” For the time being, the government has identified these areas as hotspots: Tshwane (including Pretoria), Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni, Ethekwini (including Durban), Nelson Mandela Bay (including Port Elizabeth), Buffalo City, and Cape Town.
The government also announced that, if necessary, hotspots could return to alert levels 4 or 5 if the spread of infection is not contained.
Please see the full context of the speech for further information and details.
Operating Status: Effective March 26, 2020, U.S. Consulates General Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban have suspended routine consular services. For emergency American Citizens Services, including emergency passports, please visit our websites for additional information. During level 3, the Consulates will be available for mission critical and emergency services only. Please email using the contact information at the bottom of this alert to schedule an appointment if you have an emergency need for services. Otherwise, please wait until appointments are reopened online.
Please see all past alerts at the U.S. Embassy website: https://za.usembassy.gov/category/alert/.
If you are a U.S. citizen in South Africa and your visa is expiring, please see the Department of Home Affairs announcement regarding measures put in place to address these concerns. We are unable to answer questions about visa extensions or when DHA will reopen.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 3 Travel Notice for South Africa.
Local Resources
- View U.S. Embassy Pretoria’s most recent alerts
- President Ramaphosa’s statement regarding Alert Level 1
- Ministry of Home Affair’s statement on reopening borders
- Information about travel for individuals from high-risk countries in the Government Gazette
- COVID-19 information page on National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD)
- Department of Home Affairs page for latest information on travel requirements for South Africa
- COVID-19 Corona Virus: South African Resource Portal and data free portal (no data or airtime to needed for access)
Other links:
- COVID-19 information page on travel.state.gov
- CDC page on COVID-19
- state.gov Country Information and Travel Advisory page