During the past decade, there has been significant growth in the number of international students seeking access to South African higher education institutions. Concomitant with this growth has been a need for management of the internationalisation process at higher education institutions; however, this has not always been forthcoming. This article provides a comparative analysis of internationalisation in selected South African universities during the immediate postapartheid period since the 1990s. The process of establishing international offices or the lack thereof and the ongoing internationalisation of these institutions are analysed. In addition, the article considers other issues pertinent to the internationalisation of South African higher education institutions in the 21st century. The article draws on empirical research conducted by the author at various South African higher education institutions and is based on a mixed-method research design. (Contains 1 table, 4 figures and 14 notes.)