After battling for more a year and going to court twice, Wendy Kessman
and Nomfundo Ngidi, a lesbian couple, have finally been granted a visa
�` but it is the wrong one.
Since Kessman, a United States citizen, and Ngidi, who is South
African, entered into a civil union in January 2017, they have been
trying to get a spousal visa for Kessman. Their attempts were met with
two written rejections and, according to the couple, “a verbally
harassing phone call from a department [of home affairs] official”.
Last month, the high court in Johannesburg instructed the department
to respond within 10 working days to the couple’s appeal against the
department’s earlier refusal. When the department did not respond
within the court-ordered period, Ngidi says the couple were
“disappointed but not surprised”.
On Thursday, August 30 �` nearly two weeks late �` the department
informed the couple that their application for a spousal visa had been
approved.
Since Kessman’s tourist visa expired in March 2017, she has been
unable to leave South Africa, legally work or study, open a bank
account and drive.
Although the couple welcomed the news that they have been granted a
spousal visa as “a milestone”, they face another hurdle because the
visa issued does not allow Kessman to work or study in South Africa.
“It’s basically the wrong visa. The one we’ve applied for would allow
Wendy

to study and work here,” says Ngidi.
“We’ve been joking about it, saying that what the department has given
us is a housewife’s visa. Like: ‘You can stay in the country with your
spouse but you can’t really be an active citizen,’” Ngidi adds.
Kessman says that “having to have to go through yet another step [to
be issued with the correct visa] is a little disappointing”.
The couple’s lawyers will apply for a rectification of the visa.
For now, the couple’s first priority is to visit Kessman’s family in
the US.
“Before we start that process, I’m going to go home and see my family
first because I haven’t seen them since 2016,” says Kessman. “We’re
really excited that we can finally go home.”
Kessman says not eventually being issued with the correct visa “is
just not an option for us”.
“We’ve made it this far, so we’ll keep on pushing as far as we need
to. Both of us are pretty determined and persistent, so we’ll find a
way to make it work,” she laughs.
“For now, we are really happy. This a huge load off our shoulders,”
says Ngidi.
The couple told Mamba Online that they believe the response “probably”
would not have come “if it wasn’t for the support we got from the
media, advocacy groups and the department of justice”. V.2435

All 30 bank branches offering Smart ID cards and passport renewals Hanno Labuschagne14 May 2024 All 30 bank branches offering Smart ID cards and passport renewals Over half the bank branches that support Smart ID card issuing and passport renewals are in Gauteng. In addition, more than 83% of the branches are in the three most populous provinces in South Africa, while only about 56.3% of the country’s population lives in these provinces. Many people will have to travel far to use one of these branches instead of a regular, problem-ridden Home Affairs office to get a new ID or passport. Thirty bank branches support the eHomeAffairs system introduced by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) in 2016. V.5355
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The Constitutional Court recently ruled that children born in South Africa to foreign parents qualify for South African citizenship in terms of Section 2 of the South African Citizenship Act. That is, if you were born in South Africa to foreign parents who have not been admitted as permanent residents, you qualify to apply for South African citizenship upon becoming a major if your birth was registered and if you have lived here all your life, irrespective of the date of your birth and you have not accepted the nationality of another country. The judgment also reduced the term for applying for citizenship by holders of permanent residence from 5 years to 10 years by declaring Regulation 3(2)(a) of the Citizenship Act Regulations unconstitutional. V.5357
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Turkey Visa for South African Citizens In 2013, the e Visa program was launched by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, enabling citizens of more than 100 countries, such as South Africa, to request a Turkish visa through the internet. Therefore, South African tourists favor Turkey as a destination. South African citizens are no longer required to visit the Turkish embassy in person as they can now conveniently apply for their e-visa online. V.5348
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The Australian High Court passed a judgement on Friday that dismissed an Iranian asylum seeker’s plea to be released from immigration detention and enter the country. The Iranian asylum seeker, applicant ASF-17, applied to the Federal Court of Australia for a writ of habeas corpus in 2023 on the basis that his continuing detention exceeded the constitutional limitation identified in the orders of NZYQ v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs released the week prior. The applicant has been refusing to cooperate with the process of being removed from Australia to Iran since 2018, arguing that he would be at risk of persecution for his sexual orientation and religious beliefs. V.5349
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Home Affairs officials are “selling South Africa to foreign nationals” out of greed, says Minister Aaron Motsoaledi. In an exclusive interview with The Witness on Thursday, Motsoaledi said 182 department officials were dismissed for fraud and corruption between 2018 and 2024. Among those dismissed was a chief director who was implicated in assisting a foreign national in getting a permanent residence permit in the country, at a fee. Those who bear the brunt of the corruption are mostly drug addicts, whose personal information is used by Home Affairs officials to create fake IDs and passports for foreigners. V.5350
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Visa waivers for travellers from Kenya and Ghana have catalysed a remarkable 15.4% increase in international tourist numbers to South Africa. File picture: Tracey Adams/ Independent Newspapers South Africa`s tourism sector is experiencing a renaissance fuelled by the recent removal of visa requirements for travellers from select African countries. The latest data from Statistics South Africa showed a remarkable surge in international arrivals, signalling a promising trajectory for the industry. V.5354
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The City of Cape Town has called on the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to address the visa system crisis and confusion over remote work visas. James Vos, the City’s Mayco member for economic growth, says the department ‘shot itself in the foot’ with the premature gazetting and withdrawal of regulations. ‘On 28 March, the DHA published the amended immigration regulations. This, however, was a day before the closing date of the public comment period. And then, on 12 April, the minister issued a notice withdrawing the 28 March amendments.’ As reported by BusinessTech, the regulations replaced the critical skills list with a new points-based system and introduced the remote work visa category. V.5345
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The City of Cape Town has slammed the Department of Home Affairs for creating confusion and continuing to score “infuriating” own goals in launching remote work visas in the country. Mayoral committee member for economic growth, James Vos, said that the last month has seen the department shoot itself in the foot with the premature gazetting and subsequent withdrawal of regulations that would create this category of visa. “On 28 March, the DHA published the amended immigration regulations. This, however, was a day before the closing date of the public comment period. And then, on 12 April, the minister issued a notice withdrawing the 28 March amendments,” Vos said. V.5346
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Recently settled case in the Labour Court demonstrated that excluding a job applicant because of their criminal record is only lawful when the requirements of that job explicitly outline and justify the need for a clean criminal record. However, legal experts say that the court’s decision ultimately delinked trust and honesty from the inherent requirements of a job, which was “concerning.” ENS Africa’s Nils Braatvedt, Kim Vova, and Lutho Zono examined the background, outcome, and subsequent analysis of the recent court ruling in O’Connor v LexisNexis. V.5347
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The City of Cape Town has slammed the Department of Home Affairs for creating confusion and continuing to score “infuriating” own goals in launching remote work visas in the country. Mayoral committee member for economic growth, James Vos, said that the last month has seen the department shoot itself in the foot with the premature gazetting-and subsequent withdrawal-of regulations that would create this category of visa. V.5343
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