Gents:
My information arrived a bit late to send to South Africa to get a pre approved rifle permit for my transit to Zimbabwe. I filled out the paperwork and hoped my delay would not be too long. What a surprise! I will never shell out the money for the pre approval service again. Here is what I experienced.

It matters little if the permit is pre approved or not. The first hunters served by the police are those whose gun cases are first delivered to the police office. If the permit has been issued, you are set to go. If your gun case is last to be off loaded, you wait. From what I saw, the airlines made five trips to the police office with 3-4 firearm cases each.

If you show up with no paperwork, it will take some time to fill it out correctly. And, if you are a first time hunter I would strongly suggest you get your permit in advance to lessen the confusion of a first time traveler to SA with firearms.

However, I had my paperwork filled out correctly in black ink, had the invite letter, 4457 and my passport all in hand. When my case was brought out and opened for inspection, the police took my paperwork, made copies, and I was out in 10 minutes. Others who had their paperwork pre approved were out of the office in about the same amount of time. It seemed to me the wait was for the gun cases to come from the airline.

A porter approached me and he assisted taking my bags to the City Hotel and I asked him to meet me there at 7am for my departure. He did and for a $10 tip, he did the same thing as those charging several times that for assistance from the professional companies who meet, greet, and assist.

To sum up, I saved about $110 in FEDEX fees to send the required documents to one of the several agencies who get the permits in advance, I saved the $120 in the pre approval fees, and another $100 (approximately) in assistance to the hotel and from the hotel when departing. I experienced absolutely no waiting time longer than those with the permits in hand already.

I will state again, if you're a first timer, use the service to get acquainted with the procedures. After that, it is an absolute waste of time and money to buy the services. And, call the fella that assisted me, Willie, at 073-254-1508. He will do all the assistance you need for $10. He knows all the ropes to depart, where to go, whom to see, etc. And, he will be VERY appreciative of the tip!

One cock-up Willie was able to help me with is this: my checked luggage case with the locked ammo case within was handed over to SAA from Delta to go on to Harare. When I checked in at SAA with my rifle case they asked about ammo and I told them I did not have it as it was checked through to Harare. The lady at the counter had a difficult time with this as the locked ammo box must be checked as a separate item. She sent me to the Delta baggage office to get the bag and Delta could not find it. They said it was given to SAA the night prior. Off to the SAA baggage office and they could not find it. Willy was very helpful in knowing where to go and it turns out my bag was sent on to Harare and it was there when I cleared the Visa and passport check. Willy did a great job for a fraction of the cost of a professional meet and greet organization.

In 2018 I will go though Jo'burg twice with a rifle and will do the same as this year. The pre approval and meet and greet services are nice, but not needed at all if you have the directions to fill in the SAP 520 form correctly, in black ink, and your other paperwork is in order.

Bottom line: from the time by rifle case was opened and I showed the serial number to the police lady as I handed her my paperwork, I was had my permit in 10 minutes and was out the door to the hotel.

Cal

PS. To balance the City Hotel to a B&B, here is my opinion:

City Hotel is quick to get to as no shuttle is needed, it has a great restaurant to eat in the pm and am, the price is close to the same as a B&B, but the wait time to check in can be a half hour or longer if several folks are in line ahead of you.

Local B&Bs that cater to hunters check you in quickly, but the shuttle takes time and is one more step that could possibly go wrong and cause a delay if a problem arises, and their selection of food is limited. They do have a great atmosphere of Africana and hunting and you'll meet other hunters for a comfortable and friendly evening.

The only add to your efforts, Cal, is to have a folder ready with copies of all the documents that you can give to the SAPS so they don't waste time making copies of: your passport front two pages; your travel itinerary; your 4457; your hunt invitation letter. NOTE: if you come in on SAA you have to sign for your firearm at the office there by the baggage carousels, then one of the lads takes it to the Firearms Branch.

Agree that first timers should use a service. I used to work in South Africa and am in Southern Africa to hunt every year and don't bother with a service.

Regards, Tim

Using a SA service does shortcut the lines. We've never stood in line for anything in Jo-berg when using a service. I'm sure they show their appreciation to the right people to ensure you get to the front of the line.

Well I used a service, but was able to scan my documents send my e-mail, $110 cheaper then FedEx.

I have not stayed at City Lodge, but have at the Intercontinental and Africa Sky. I will stay at Intercontinental next trip, if I go thru JNB.

I was on the same flight as Cal. I used a service. I will continue to do so. First, they got us around the lines at passport control. They took us straight to the police. It was a mad house. The people we used knew just who to see and we avoided all the mass of people. Will I do it again? I already have.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
I was on the same flight as Cal. I used a service. I will continue to do so. First, they got us around the lines at passport control. They took us straight to the police. It was a mad house. The people we used knew just who to see and we avoided all the mass of people. Will I do it again? I already have.

Same experience here!

$110.00 is a very small percentage, a rounding error in the overall cost of the whole trip. And after 25 hours of travel? I'll gladly pay $110.00 to cut the hassle! Every time!

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
I was on the same flight as Cal. I used a service. I will continue to do so. First, they got us around the lines at passport control. They took us straight to the police. It was a mad house. The people we used knew just who to see and we avoided all the mass of people. Will I do it again? I already have.

This exactly why I recommend the full VIP service to every client.

Mark

+1

Was my speedy trip through the police station an exception? I don't know how any service could have made it go any faster.
Cal

Been a while, but as I remember having the permit preissued you go to the front of the line and the service guy is there to help good news after traveling for 25 hours or more . Doing your own paper work is fine and there is not much of a line at the police station you clear quickly . However if 2 777s arrive before you and you are the last to get your luggage you end up at the end of the line, even if you have everything filled out correctly .Then the police go on break it can be a long and frustrating wait to get cleared .. God help you if you do not have the paper work.

Damn, I'm glad I don't screw around with all this mess/expense...

I use AfricaSky to pre-clear all my permits. In the big picture of a safari I am not to concerned with an extra $100 or so of the cost for this service. I think of it as a form of insurance, do I need them to do this, maybe not but I am glad to have the guys there from AfricaSky to communicate with SAPs and a lot less chance of getting any complications or attitude from the paper stampers. I have never had anything but smiles and hand shakes from SAPs when taking this route and will continue to do so.

I just got back from RSA, I used Afton house for my permit and a meet and greet, but they never showed up. As my permit had already been issued i couldnt do another and waited for over an hour for Afton to show up. this was with 5 phone calls to them. Ive done it myself 4-5 times and will be doing it on my own from now on.

We had Air2000 miss meeting us on a connection last trip...we nearly missed our flight because of it. I still see the value of the service but was also glad we knew the process ourselves or we would have missed our connection.

Having just returned from J Burg yesterday, I agree with Cal. People were processed as their weapons came out. My tenth time through the process and have always done it myself.

I agree with both Cal and those desiring to use the services. I just went through SAPS July 11 and used rifle permits.com this time. I've done it myself several times as well. The key is to have everything in order as Cal stressed. I've never had problems in 6 or 7 times through the process.

Oddly, July usually sees many guns coming through at once, but I was the only firearm owner this time. I once counted 31 and 17 on other July trips. PHASA also has a service that I hear is very good.

Kelly:
It's been a long time. Good to hear your voice again.
Cal

Yes, too much time in the office and not enough behind a good double. Glad to see you are still traveling with lethal intent. Thanks for the wise words here.

I have never used a service. Never had a problem and never felt unduly delayed. However, I usually stay at Africa Sky or Afton and they are there if I need them.