In December however, the Supreme Court upgraded his conviction to murder on appeal.

The original trial judge, Thokozile Masipa, will deliver the sentence at the Pretoria High Court.

Johannesburg-based lawyer and legal analyst Ulrich Roux said Masipa would have to balance any mitigating circumstances against the seriousness of his crime.

"For her it's a delicate balancing act," said Roux, adding that either the defence or prosecution could mount a legal challenge if they felt that the sentence was lenient or harsh.

In a television interview with British broadcaster ITV aired in June, his first since the shooting, an emotional Pistorius said that Steenkamp would want him to go free.

"I don't want to go back to jail. I don't want to have to waste my life sitting there," Pistorius told ITV, statements which caused an uproar on social media.

Manelisi Wolela, a spokesman at the Department of Correctional Services, said Pistorius would be taken to jail immediately after the sentencing.