South Africans living abroad were the first set of voters to cast their ballots on Friday, ahead of the main polls on 29 May.
South African voters living in Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Syria cast their votes at their respective foreign missions between 07:00 and 19:00 local time.
South Africans in over 100 other countries will vote on Saturday.
Voting will extend to Sunday for voters in London, where nearly a third of the 76 580 South African voters living abroad are expected to cast their ballots.
Voting will not happen in Israel, Ukraine and Sudan, which are all currently experiencing conflict.