Home Affairs to be taken to court
5 April 2016 – Groundup
Concern over withdrawal of rights of asylum seekers and refugees
Immigration lawyers have accused the Department of Home Affairs of
being in contempt of a High Court order. This comes after the
department withdrew an instruction allowing asylum seekers and
refugees to apply for permanent residence without giving up their
asylum or refugee status. The Department also withdrew an instruction
allowing asylum seekers and refugees to apply for temporary residence
without a valid passport.
Temporary residence visas include relatives` visas and work visas.
"The effect of this is huge, as asylum seekers are struggling to get
married and register the birth of their children with South African
spouses," the Forum of Immigration Practitioners said.
Another effect was that asylum seekers who did not have temporary
residence could not open a bank account, FIPSA said. This made them
vulnerable to crooks who preyed on them because they carried cash.
The directive signed by Mkuseli Apleni on 3 February 2016 explains
that the Department believes that asylum seekers (who are yet to be
granted refugee status) should not have their status changed, for
example given permanent or temporary residence, until they are
certified as refugees. Following this logic, the Department has
withdrawn a circular of 2008 which had allowed asylum seekers to apply
for permanent residence.
In the directive, Apleni, who is Director General of Home Affairs,
states, "I wish to advise all immigration officials that Departmental
Circular No. 10 of 2008 has fallen away since the 26th of May 2014 and
is hereby officially withdrawn. All applications for change of status
from asylum seeker permit to temporary residence visa which are still
pending in the system should be processed as per this directive
regardless of the date of application".

Apleni`s directive comes in spite of a 2003

Western Cape High Court
order. In the matter of Dabone and others vs the Minister of Home
Affairs, the court instructed that asylum seekers and refugees should
be able to apply for temporary residence permits and permanent
residence without having to cancel their asylum seeker status or give
up their refugee status.
Another important provision of the court order was that asylum seekers
or refugees do not need to be in possession of a valid passport for
their temporary residence permits to be processed or issued.
FIPSA said the Department`s new directive was "breaking the law" by
deviating from the court order.
"The Dabone Judgement is in fact a consent order of court which means
that as parties to the agreement the Department of Home Affairs have
agreed to it and that it is binding. As such it cannot be appealed to
a higher court and any deviation thereto constitutes a contempt of
court," said FIPSA.
FIPSA also said that VFS, which is the company that processes visa
documents, had stopped accepting applications for temporary or
permanent residence from refugees or asylum seekers.
FIPSA and other interested parties are to take the Department to court
on 21 April 2016, with Tashriq Ahmed representing them. FIPSA told
GroundUp that the Department had said it would defend the matter. "But
it is a consent order, so it is inconceivable what defence they can
mount. As we have seen before, Home Affairs have a pattern of just
appealing matters to frustrate clients as justice is expensive, in the
hope clients will run out of money."
FIPSA said asylum seekers and refugees were vulnerable and few
organisations took up their battle to win their rights under the
constitution.
The Department`s spokesperson promised on Friday to respond to
questions but has not yet done so. V.1606

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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