Market intelligence for international student recruitment from ICEF
21st Jun 2017

South African ELT recovery underway

Enrolment in South African English Language Teaching (ELT) programmes has begun to recover from a drastic decline in 2015. Recently released full-year data for 2016 shows a 19% increase in student numbers compared to the year before, and a 20% increase in student weeks. While the sector has not fully rebounded from an even greater enrolment decline of -28% between 2014 and 2015, it appears well positioned for further growth through 2017. enrolment-in-south-african-elt-by-student-numbers-and-student-weeks-2014–2016 Enrolment in South African ELT by student numbers and student weeks, 2014–2016. Source: EduSA That significant drop in 2015 arises from amendments to South Africa’s immigration legislation the year before that effectively excluded language schools from the country’s student visa process. In a rather remarkable turn of events, this meant that students intending to pursue longer-term studies with a South African ELT provider could no longer get a student visa. The country’s peak body for ELT, Education South Africa (EduSA) tried for nearly two years to resolve the matter with government officials with no success. This led in turn to an even more remarkable development when EduSA took the South African government to court in September 2016 in a bid to have the May 2014 amendments to the Immigration Act set aside or modified. As we now know, that case was settled out of court in November 2016, with the result that study visas of up to 18 months can now be issued for students enrolled with recognised ELT providers. While this landmark settlement resolved an issue that had badly hampered the industry since 2014, it would have come too late in the year to have any significant effect on 2016 numbers. This makes the industry’s progress last year even more noteworthy, and suggests that South African providers had adapted their programming and recruitment strategies to better target short-term ELT students during the year.

Making the shift to short term

“Schools have adapted to the visa issues,” agrees EduSA Chair Johannes Kraus. “We have managed to get students into South Africa through visitor visas and we were then helping the students who wanted to stay longer than 90 days with an extension to 180 days. The extension processes have mainly been smooth.” “You can also see that the numbers from Europe have reached 2014 level again. Reason for that is, that most European countries do not need a visa to come to South Africa, they receive a 90-day visitors visa on arrival in South Africa and then the visa can be extended as well. Most schools, I presume, have focused on markets where visitor visas are easy to obtain. This has helped our numbers grow as well.” As Mr Kraus suggests, EduSA members have placed a greater emphasis on markets where visas are easily acquired, or not required at all. The South African Department of Home Affairs maintains a list of countries – primarily in Latin America, Europe, and Africa – whose citizens are exempt from visas for stays of 90 days or less. Russia was recently added to the 90-day exemption list, and EduSA members are now looking to expand share in this important market, which appears poised as well for a recovery in outbound mobility this year. In 2016, ELT providers in South Africa saw the greatest gains from markets in Europe (+21%), Latin America (+40%), and the Middle East (+109%), with Germany, Switzerland, France, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia driving much of the growth from those key regions. EduSA members have also shown an increasing reliance on overseas agents over the last three years. In 2014, roughly six in ten ELT students (60%) were referred by agents. In 2016, the proportion of agent-recruited students increased to 66%.

Looking ahead

With the visa issue now resolved, EduSA members can hope for a further expansion in 2017, and for an increasing proportion of longer-term students in particular. Mr Kraus adds, “I believe we are on a good path now to overcome the visa crisis. More and more embassies are finally enforcing the visa settlement in court and EduSA member schools that have applied for provisional registration with the Department of Higher Education and Training are receiving study permits from more and more embassies around the world. So, I sincerely hope that our 2017 student numbers will come closer to our record year of 2014.” For additional background, please see:

Most Recent

  • The UK is quickly expanding its TNE footprint in India Read More
  • Türkiye: After a decade of dramatic growth, a goal to host 500,000 international students by 2028 Read More
  • Impact study shows pursuit of new experience is a key driver for international exchange Read More

Most Popular

  • Which countries will contribute the most to global student mobility in 2030? Read More
  • Research shows link between study abroad and poverty alleviation  Read More
  • Beyond the Big Four: How demand for study abroad is shifting to destinations in Asia and Europe Read More

Because you found this article interesting

The UK is quickly expanding its TNE footprint in India As universities in the Big Four (Australia, Canada, the UK, and the US) face more immigration-related challenges in...
Read more
Türkiye: After a decade of dramatic growth, a goal to host 500,000 international students by 2028 In the past couple of years, we have frequently referred to “alternative” destinations that are becoming more popular...
Read more
UK to implement reduced Graduate Route from January 2027 The UK Home Office has confirmed the implementation of one of the key items in its May 2025...
Read more
UK transnational education enrolments poised to surpass onshore students this decade The latest available numbers from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) tell us that there were 732,285 international...
Read more
Trump administration’s proposed deal with select US colleges includes a cap on international undergraduate enrolment Update for 21 October 2025: The administration’s 20 October deadline for responding to the proposed compact has now...
Read more
Australia introduces new integrity measures through proposed amendments to the ESOS Act Australian Minister of Education Jason Clare tabled the Education Legislation Amendment (Integrity and Other Measures) Bill 2025 in...
Read more
Australia: With ELICOS under pressure, peak bodies push for reduction in “extortionate” visa fees The latest data from the Department of Education reveals that enrolments in Australia’s ELICOS sector (English Language Intensive...
Read more
South Korea hits its 300,000 student target two years ahead of schedule In 2023, the South Korean government announced a plan to attract 300,000 international students by 2027: 220,000 in...
Read more
What are you looking for?
Quick Links