How South African Students Get a Foreign Qualification Evaluated by SAQA
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Aug 07, 2026 • Guides
A SAQA Certificate of Evaluation tells South African employers, universities and professional bodies what your foreign qualification is worth locally. Apply online, pay in rand, and expect an electronic certificate only.
💵 2025/26 fees: R2,270 for your first qualification, R950 for each extra qualification submitted with it, R110 to verify a certificate already issued.
🎓 SAQA compares your qualification's level, credits and content against the South African NQF.
📩 Certificates have been electronic-only since July 2021, no printed copies are issued.
⏱️ Non-compliant applications get 30 calendar days to fix missing documents before the fee is forfeited.
What a SAQA Certificate of Evaluation is
The South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) evaluates qualifications earned outside South Africa and issues a Certificate of Evaluation stating where that qualification sits on South Africa's National Qualifications Framework (NQF). Employers, universities, the South African Qualifications Authority itself and many professional councils ask for this certificate before they will accept a foreign degree, diploma or certificate as valid.
Who needs it
You need a SAQA evaluation if you studied outside South Africa and now want to apply for further study at a South African institution, apply for a job that requires a specific qualification level, register with a professional body such as those overseeing engineering, health or accounting professions, or apply for certain visas and permits where proof of qualification level is required.
2025/26 fees
SAQA revises its tariffs periodically. According to SAQA's fee notice covering 2024/25 and 2025/26, the 2025/26 charges are:
| Service | Fee (ZAR) |
|---|---|
| Evaluation, first qualification | R2,270 |
| Evaluation, each additional qualification submitted with the first | R950 |
| Verification of a certificate already issued | R110 |
Payment must be made in South African rand. Confirm the current tariff on SAQA's website before you apply, as these amounts change from one financial year to the next.
Documents you need
Certified copies of the qualification certificate(s) you want evaluated.
Certified copies of your full academic transcripts.
A certified copy of your identity document or passport.
Proof of payment in rand for the correct fee.
SAQA checks each application for completeness before processing starts. If documents are missing or do not meet requirements, you get 30 calendar days to submit what is missing.
Miss that window and the application fee is forfeited, so you would need to reapply and pay again.
How to apply
Apply through SAQA's Evaluation of Foreign Qualifications service, or start from the South African Government services page on evaluating foreign qualifications, which links to the same SAQA process. Create your application, upload certified copies of your documents, pay the fee, and track your application status online.
What you receive
Since July 2021, SAQA issues only electronic Certificates of Evaluation. Once your evaluation is complete, you access and download the certificate online rather than receiving a printed copy in the mail. Keep the digital file safe, employers and institutions increasingly accept the electronic version directly, but you may need to share it multiple times across different applications.
Plan around processing time
Evaluation takes time, and incomplete documentation is the most common cause of delay. Gather certified copies of every certificate and transcript before you start, confirm the current fee, and apply well ahead of any admission or job application deadline that depends on the result.