South Africa (23/09/2023)

A qualification is exempt from assessment and qualifies for the indicated points if:

the qualification and the awarding institution is listed; and
the qualification was awarded from or within the year listed in the ‘effective from’ column of the list; and
The qualification was not completed outside of the country, including any overseas campuses of the listed awarding institution; and
the qualification is not excluded by the notes listed in the notes section.

Institution	Effective from	Qualification	NZQF qualification type and level	SMC points
Cape Peninsula University of Technology	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Cape Peninsula University of Technology	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Central University of Technology, Free State	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Central University of Technology, Free State	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Durban University of Technology	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Durban University of Technology	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Mangosuthu University of Technology	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Mangosuthu University of Technology	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University	Effective from 2009 to 2017	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University	Effective from 2012 to 2017	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Nelson Mandela University	Effective from 2017	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Nelson Mandela University		Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
North-West University (Noordwes Universiteit), (Yunibesiti ya Bokone-Bophirima)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Rhodes University	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Rhodes University	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University	Effective from 2014	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University		Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Sol Plaatje University	Effective from 2014	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Sol Plaatje University		Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
Tshwane University of Technology	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
Tshwane University of Technology	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Cape Town (Universiteit van Kaapstad), (iYunivesithi Yasekapa)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Fort Hare	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Fort Hare	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Johannesburg	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Johannesburg	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Kwazulu-Natal (Inyuvesi Yakwazulu-Natali)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Kwazulu-Natal (Inyuvesi Yakwazulu-Natali)	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Limpopo	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Limpopo	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Mpumalanga	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Mpumalanga	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Pretoria	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Pretoria	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of South Africa (UNISA)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of South Africa (UNISA)	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Stellenbosch (Universiteit Stellenbosch)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Stellenbosch (Universiteit Stellenbosch)	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of the Free State (Universiteit van die Vrystaat), (Yunivesithi ya Freistata)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of the Western Cape	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of the Western Cape	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of the Witwatersrand	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of the Witwatersrand	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Venda (Univen), (also known as University of Venda for Science and Technology)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5
University of Zululand (Unizulu)	Effective from 2009	Bachelor’s degree (without Honours)	Level 7 Bachelor's degree	3
University of Zululand (Unizulu)	Effective from 2012	Master’s degree	Level 9 Master’s degree	5

Notes:

For bachelor’s degree (without Honours):
This list applies to bachelor’s degrees (without Honours) only. Bachelor’s degrees with Honours (the awarding certificate may state ‘Honours’, ‘Honores’, ‘Honneurs’, or ‘Honories’) are excluded from this list.

Some four-year full time bachelor’s degrees are listed on the South Africa National Qualification Framework (SANQF) at Level 8. These degrees may be considered comparable to a level higher than level 7 on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF). You can apply for an International Qualification Assessment (IQA) with NZQA if you believe your qualification should be compared to a higher NZQF level. These include but are not limited to the following professional bachelor’s degrees:

- Bachelor of Architecture
- Bachelor of Engineering 
- Bachelor of Laws 
- Bachelor of Nursing
- Bachelor of Occupational Therapy
- Bachelor of Pharmacy 
- Bachelor of Social Work
- Bachelor of Speech-Language Pathology
- All bachelor's degrees in Education and related fields
- All bachelor's degrees in Medicine, Veterinary, Optometry, Audiology, Dentistry and Midwifery 

For master’s degree:
This list applies to master’s degrees that require either 1.5 years or more of full-time study, OR a minimum of 180 SANQF Credits. If the standard full-time duration cannot be determined, or the overall credits of study cannot be calculated based on the academic transcript, the qualification must be evaluated by NZQA.

Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees are excluded from this list.

Effective 23/09/2023

Top of page | Print this page


	ARCHIVED	These are archived immigration instructions that are no longer current