Windhoek – Children born by non-Namibian parents, who are on temporary
residence permits, will no longer be allowed to register as Namibian
citizens unless both parents are permanent residents in the country,
according to Home Affairs Minister Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana.


Iivula-Ithana tabled Namibia Citizenship Amendment Bill in Parliament
last week that seeks to amend the Namibian Citizenship Act of 1990 to
make clear the meaning of the term ordinary resident in relation to
the acquisition of Namibian citizenship by birth of a person born in
Namibia by parents who are not Namibian citizens.


In her motivation speech, Minister Iivula-Ithana said the amendment
has been necessitated by a new development in interpretation of the
constitutional provision pertaining to citizenship by birth,
particularly the interpretation of the term `ordinarily resident` that
appears in Article 4 of the Namibian Constitution.


Article 4 of Namibian Constitution, speaks about Acquisition and Loss
of Citizenship. According to Article 4 (1), "the persons shall be
citizens of Namibia by birth: (a) those born in Namibia before the
date of Independence whose fathers or mothers would have been Namibian
citizens at the time of the birth of such persons, if this
Constitution had been in force at that time; and (b) those born in
Namibia before the date of Independence, who are not Namibian citizens
under Sub-Article (a) hereof, and whose fathers or mothers were
ordinarily resident in Namibia at the time of the birth of such
persons".


However, the Bill proposes that the term "ordinary resident", in
relation to the acquisition of Namibian citizenship by birth by reason
of being born in Namibia after the date of Independence by a father
and mother who are not Namibian citizens, exclude parents on
employment permit, visitor`s entry permit and parents who are refugees
at the time of birth of the child.


Iivula-Ithana said since the term ordinary resident or residence

is
neither defined in the Constitution nor in the Namibian Citizenship
Act No. 14 of 1990, it has been left open to interpretation.


"The open to interpretation nature of this term can be seen by the
different opinions and rulings of the Attorney General, High Court and
Supreme Court. It is ideal to have the situation like this; in fact,
it is catastrophic, it causes implementation problems," she
said.


Iivula-Ithana said the fact that the Supreme Court did define what
ordinary resident/ordinary residence means just indicates that it does
not mean permanently resident, and a number of factors must be
considered.


She said once the Bill becomes a law, it will be easy for the
officials to determine ordinary residence when it means permanent
residence because one would need to present a certificate for the
permanent residence issued in terms of the Immigration Control Act of
1993.


"I am aware that the Constitution prohibits our deprivation of
citizenship to the extent that we render people to be
stateless.


I do however hasten to add that in many cases these children would not
be otherwise stateless as they ought to follow the non-Namibianship of
their parents. Additionally, as citizens by birth they would be
entitled dual citizenship which result in double allegiance," she
said.


Currently, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration is only
issuing birth certificates indicative of citizenship by birth to
children born by foreign parents who are holders of permanent
residence permits.


Those permit are issued in terms of the Immigration Control Act No. 7
of 1993. Those born to foreign parents on employment, study or
visitor`s entry permits and refugees were issued with non-Namibian
birth certificates reflecting that they are born in Namibia but are
not citizen by birth. V.1673

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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.
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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.

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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.

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

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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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