International ~3 h early; immigration often 45–90 min at peak.

Immigration and security at peak banks regularly run 45–90 minutes. Arrive ~3 hours before an international departure and ~2 hours for domestic. Morning (06:00–09:00) and late-afternoon (16:00–20:00) waves are the worst. BidAir / paid fast-track exists for arrivals when you cannot absorb a queue — confirm the live price; do not treat blog “R800–R1000” figures as a published tariff. Gautrain beats the R21 / N3 in weekday traffic while trains run.

A = international, B = domestic; no airside link — reclear if you switch.

There is no airside walk between Terminal A and Terminal B. If you connect international↔domestic you reclear security (and immigration on the international side). International lounges cluster after passport control toward Duty Free / Gates A7–A18. Domestic Bidvest Premier is down the escalators after Terminal B security; Bidvest Sky is a smaller Level 3 domestic room. Gautrain sits on the upper level above international departures.

PP = Bidvest A 24h + Bidvest B + Shongololo/Mashonzha; SLOW is FNB/RMB only.

Priority Pass: Bidvest Premier International (Terminal A, 00:00–23:59; PP notes ongoing refurbishment with the room staying open; max stay commonly 3–4 h) and Bidvest Premier Domestic (Terminal B, Mon–Fri 04:30–21:00 / Sat–Sun 05:00–21:00; max 2 h). Shongololo (A, 06:00–22:00) and Mashonzha (A, 07:00–22:00 — international, not domestic) are the independent backups. Bidvest Sky (Terminal B Level 3) is a smaller domestic Bidvest product. SLOW International (24h) and SLOW Domestic (typically ~04:30–20:30/21:00) are exclusive to qualifying FNB / RMB cards — no walk-in, no Priority Pass. SAA Cycad (A) / Baobab (B) and the Lufthansa Lounge (A) are airline / alliance rooms, not general card lounges.

Gautrain OR Tambo–Sandton R228 / ~15 min; last trains ~20:30.

Default public option is Gautrain from the airport station above International departures. Official fare guide (effective 1 Jun 2025, still posted Sep 2026): OR Tambo ↔ Sandton or Marlboro R228; Rosebank / Park R240; Pretoria / Hatfield / Centurion R258. Airport legs do not get the weekday off-peak discount. Contactless bank cards work; otherwise a Gautrain Card needs a minimum load (R38). Journey time to Sandton is about 14–15 minutes. Last trains are around 20:30 — after that use Uber/Bolt or a metered taxi from the signed rank. Official / metered taxis toward Sandton often run roughly R300–500; CBD can be higher in traffic — confirm before boarding. Meet app cars on the departures level to avoid the arrivals scrum.