Cape Town – Foreign tourists who have been rejected coming into South
African say there is no way for them to acquire the necessary visas
for minors, as these documents simply do not exist in their countries.

To make matters worse, these travellers say they are, or were,
completely unaware that they didn`t have the right documentation going
to the airport, as they followed the necessary steps as best they could.

Paul van der Bosch contacted Traveller24 following a report of
confused travellers who had trouble with the controversial visa
regulations.

The new visa regulations, aimed at curbing child trafficking, at first
ask for all minors to travel with unabridged birth certificates.

Following public outcry and a worrisome drop in SA tourism, the visa
regulations were amended for foreigners.

After a request by the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) task team –
established to investigate the effects of SA`s controversial
immigration regulations - in October this year, Cabinet approved that
the term "unabridged birth certificate" may be replaced with the term
"birth certificate containing parental details" for foreign travellers.

But in the midst of this confusion, travellers are having their SA
holidays held up.

Dutch citizen Paul van den Bosch is one of these travellers. Van den
Bosch is married to a South African, and has two Dutch children from a
previous marriage.

Before coming to SA, Van den Bosch says he had acquired "all documents
long before time".

But a gap in translation, from English to Dutch, saw them being denied
boarding at the airport.

This is what Paul van den Bosch told Traveller24:

"We and 10 other children were rejected from boarding because our
consent wasn`t verified by a notary of the municipality. Later I
understood that this is a definition of an affidavit. That maybe
logical in SA or the UK, but it just is completely unknown anywhere else!
"We were rejected by a rule no one knew and no one even could have
foreseen. Even now it`s impossible for a municipality [in the
Netherlands], where I live, to stamp my consent; it`s just something
that does-not-exist here, period.

"So there we were with crying children, holding up the flight. KLM
(our airline) did help us a bit, we could use next day`s

flight, but
this was the worst travel-experience ever. This has so much negativity
for SA as a tourist attraction.
"Everyone saying `well, those are the rules` - and we heard a lot of
them say that - they did not realize the communication is so extremely
bad, maybe specially for non-English speaking countries with the
language barrier and the non-written procedures that exist in a country."

Van den Bosch says they were eventually allowed to fly, but predicts
that if the regulations aren't changed, "the effects on the tourist
industry and the global view SA will be downhill".

Tourism authority Holger Krogsgaard Jensen from Jensen Safaris says
many of their clients have the same problem. Most recently, he says, a
family of five was refused boarding at Hamburg Airport, in spite of
bringing the original documents to the airport.

This was because in Scandinavia, from where most of Jensen Safaris`
clients originate, the State Church, and not the government, issue
birth certificates.

Jensen wrote the following to Traveller24:

"The visa regulations remain a nightmare – we`ve had several guests
off-loaded at huge cost to both us and our clients. Now that the
decision has been taken to scrap the regulations, one cannot
understand why it was not implemented before the busy Christmas
season, when thousands of travellers bring their children.

"The restrictions on children under 18 could be scrapped with the
stroke of a pen. Instead it is now left to individual check-in staff
members to implement this impossible piece of legislation, which sows
confusion every day.
"No other country has something called an "unabridged birth
certificate". If a client from a non-English speaking country, for
example, tries to get a translation on the internet, it will say a
"government-issued birth certificate", but many countries do not issue
such documents.

Department of Home Affairs spokesperson Mayihlome Tshwete told
Traveller24 the DHA cannot answer generalized requests as to why
certain people travelling with minors are not allowed entry into South
Africa, and will handle all cases individually. V.1519

One of the highlighted topics: Critical Skills Visa.

- Key Insight: Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast track to working in South Afr...
- This matter relates to critical skills visa and its broader implications.
- Individuals are advised to seek professional guidance.

Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast trac V.6139
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One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, became a victim of identity theft in 2012 when fraudulent transactions occurred, using her personal details.

-The Pretoria High Court found that the department of home affairs had violated constitutional rights without due process.
-Only half of Lawyers for Human Rights` test group has been unblocked, while 385 000 identities remain blocked nationwide.
-LHR appeals extension, urges affected people to seek help now.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) are intensifying pressure on the department of home affairs over the national ID-blocking crisis, accusing the state of acting too slowly to unblock qualifying individuals despite a landmark court ruling.

In January last year, the Pretoria High Court found that the department`s practice of blocking IDs without due process was unlawful and unconstitutional. One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, a Swati citizen and South African permanent resident since 1998, fell victim to identity theft in 2012 when fraudsters used her personal details.

 V.6133
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6128
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6129
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A Washington state mother and her 6-year-old son have been released after spending more than three weeks in US immigration detention due to a brief trip to Canada and a small paperwork mistake, her attorney told CNN on Saturday.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand citizen who has lived legally in the US since she arrived in 2021, was detained at the Blaine, Washington, Customs and Border Protection checkpoint when returning home after dropping her two oldest children off at the Vancouver airport for a flight to visit their grandparents in New Zealand. Shaw, 33, chose the flight out of Vancouver because it was direct and she didn`t want her children to have to navigate a layover alone, her attorney Minda Thorward, told CNN.

 V.6130
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On 22 July 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Sitrusrand Boerdery`s review of the Department of Employment and Labour`s refusal to issue a Working Conditions and Salary Benchmarking Certificate, an essential precondition for obtaining corporate visas under the Immigration Act.

Acting Judge Kekana AJ held that the Department`s decision was lawful, rational and procedurally fair. This judgment illustrates how businesses can - and must - structure their corporate visa applications to meet statutory requirements, and how legal practitioners should prepare robust review challenges when administrative authorities decline to recommend foreign-work permits.

 V.6131
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The United States could forfeit an estimated 9.4 billion dollars in visitor spending over the next three years following the introduction of a new 250 dollars `visa integrity fee,` according to industry groups, who warn the policy risks undermining tourism and costing thousands of jobs.
The United States’ decision to introduce a 250 dollars `visa integrity fee` on international visitors has triggered sharp criticism from the global tourism industry, with officials warning that the measure could deter millions of travellers and cost the U.S. economy billions.
The 250dollar `visa integrity fee,` part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, will take effect later this year. According to immigration law firm Envoy Global, it applies to all nonimmigrant visa holders which include students, tourists, temporary workers, and business visitors particularly from African countries. V.6132
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6127
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1. Right to Legal Representation•You have the right to consult with a legal representative.•Contact an immigration practitioner, legal aid clinic, or attorney urgently.•Do not sign any documents without understanding them fully. 2. Section 34 of the Immigration Act•You must be brought to court with 48 hours to confirm arrest but you can remain locked up very long as courts figure out what to do with you •If you`re found to be illegally in South Africa, you may be detained for up to 30 days (extendable by a magistrate) pending deportation.•BUT this cannot happen arbitrarily. You must be informed of your rights, and Home Affairs must follow due process.- becomes a nightmare , you could lose your job , business , place to stay V.6121
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Driving for Bolt, Uber, Mr D, or Checkers Sixty60?If you`re undocumented, you`re risking more than just your income.The Risks if You`re Not Legal: - Vehicle impoundment - Heavy fines - Arrest & deportation - Permanent bans from working in SA V.6122
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