Do UAE passport holders need a visa to visit South Africa?

No visa needed. UAE ordinary passport holders can enter South Africa visa-free for tourism for up to 90 days per entry. United Arab Emirates ordinary passport holders are visa-exempt for South Africa. Since a bilateral visa-waiver arrangement took effect, the UAE has been on South Africa's 90-day visa exemption list, meaning Emirati citizens can travel for tourism, business or family visits without arranging a visa in advance. You simply receive a visitor's entry stamp on arrival. The standard stay granted is up to 90 days. South African immigration asks travelers intending to stay longer than 30 days to declare their intended length of stay to the immigration officer on arrival. Your passport must be valid for at least 30 days beyond your intended departure (a 6-month buffer is strongly advised) and must have at least two consecutive blank pages for entry/exit stamps; failure to have enough blank pages can result in refusal of entry. There is no application, no online form (no eVisa is required for this nationality for short stays) and no fee for the visa-free entry itself. Note: this exemption is for ordinary (regular) passports used for short visits; longer stays, study, work or other purposes require the appropriate visa obtained in advance.