It was with this in mind that the opening words of the Freedom Charter and later the preamble of the Constitution proclaimed, ‘South Africa belongs to all who live in it’.
Unlike the US or our neighbour Lesotho, South Africa does not confer citizenship simply because you were born in its territory â€` there must be a further tie to the country. Children born to South African citizens (whether one or both parents) are automatically citizens, and children born and registered to foreign parents who were admitted for permanent residence qualify for citizenship when they turn 18 if they have lived in South Africa their whole life.
But what about the many children born in South Africa to parents who were neither South African citizens nor foreigners admitted for permanent residence?
While the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2010 has been criticised for restricting citizenship rights, including the “midnight deprivation” of the right to citizenship acquired under previous legislation, it took one positive step towards inclusion by broadening the category of persons eligible to apply for citizenship.
The Citizenship Amendment Act, which came into force on 1 January 2013, provided a new pathway to citizenship: children born and registered in South Africa to parents who were neither South African citizens nor permanent residents at the time of birth and who live their whole life in South Africa until they turn 18 have the right to apply for “citizenship by naturalisation”.
This progressive provision recognises the attachment and lived experience that young adults born and raised in South Africa have in their country of their birth. The provision promotes the spirit of those opening words of the Freedom Charter.
However, while the right to apply for citizenship in terms of this provision exists, there is no formal way to apply. This is because the minister of home affairs (including the six ministers who occupied that position since the Citizenship Amendment Act came into force) has not made the necessary regulations or application forms.
In 2017, five frustrated young adults who were eligible but unable to apply for citizenship approached the Western Cape High Court with the assistance of the Legal Resources Centre. The minister’s response? The provision only applies to children born after 1 January 2013, not before.
They should apply for asylum, or permanent residence, not citizenship. The court disagreed.
The court determined that the provision also applies to children born before 1 January 2013, and that by preventing them from obtaining or even applying for citizenship, the minister infringed on their dignity and personhood and effectively granted them “a status of ‘second-class’ citizens”.
The minister appealed the matter, but the Supreme Court of Appeal was equally scathing in its review of his interpretation of the provision. It found that sending the group of young adults from “pillar to post” infringed on their constitutional rights, and concluded that the “state of affairs cannot be countenanced.” It upheld the High Court’s finding that the provision also applies to children born before 1 January 2013, and ordered the minister to make the necessary regulations and application forms, and to accept applications on affidavit in the meantime.
This was in 2018. The minister appeared to

do nothing. No regulations were processed, no forms published. The young adults who brought the matter to court still weren’t assisted by the department.
About nine months later, in 2019, well beyond the normal prescribed periods for appealing a judgment, the current minister (Aaron Motsoaledi) sought to appeal the matter again, effectively sending the group of young adults from pillar to post, to the doors of the Constitutional Court. Earlier this month, the Constitutional Court refused the minister’s application to appeal. The minister’s appeal was refused as he had failed to provide adequate reasons for the delay in appealing.
It is now a decade since the Citizenship Amendment Act was passed into law, and seven years since it came into effect. Despite this, there is no indication from the Department of Home Affairs or the minister that we should expect the regulations to be made soon. The minister has been under order of the Supreme Court of Appeal to make the necessary regulations by November 2018.
This delay does not come as a surprise given the department’s history of delayed implementation of court orders. One need only look to the unreasonable delay in implementing the court orders to reopen the Port Elizabeth Refugee Reception Office (which was only done three years after the deadline given in the court order), the ongoing non-implementation of a September 2017 Supreme Court of Appeal order to reopen a fully functional Refugee Reception Office in Cape Town by 31 March 2018, or most recently, a November 2019 Supreme Court of Appeal judgment ordering the department to assist foreign nationals to conclude civil marriages in South Africa, which according to this news article is still not happening.
The minister’s failure to make the regulations and give effect to the Citizenship Amendment Act â€` in spite of the act having been passed by Parliament, signed into law by the president, and being ordered to do so by the Supreme Court of Appeal â€` poses serious challenges to the Constitution, the rule of law, and the democratic values that South Africa is so proud of. This should concern every South African, and not only those would-be citizens most impacted in this case.
The Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town, a not-for-profit organisation, is one of many organisations that have been approached by several young adults who hold this right to apply for citizenship but are unable to exercise it.
Many of these young adults are children of Angolan former refugees, children of refugees from Rwanda, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo whose parents claimed asylum in South Africa in the late 1990s or early 2000s, or other long-time migrants in the country.
In stark contrast to the words of the Freedom Charter and the Constitution, these young adults are living in a state of exclusion. They hold the right to apply for citizenship, but cannot exercise this right. They are asked to have a passport and visa to continue living in the only country they have ever known.
While the minister did not create this problem, he is well-poised to fix it. Motsoaledi should act where his predecessors did not. V.3437

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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