Elsewhere around the world, larger numbers of irregular migrants have been regularised.

Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi during a press briefing at the Department of International Affairs in Pretoria on 16 March 2020. Picture: Jacques Nelles

Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi recently lost a court case that anyone could have anticipated was unwinnable. He probably expected to lose it too. He lost it on humanitarian and technical grounds.
It prevents him from terminating the South African government’s concession to refugees from neighbouring Zimbabwe nearly 15 years ago.
In April 2009, SA provided legalised shelter for Zimbabweans hit by economic and political crisis in their country across the Limpopo River. The Zimbabwe Dispensation Project was the first form of a policy to temporarily accommodate Zimbabwean refugees.
It became the Zimbabwean special permit in 2014 and after 2017 it was known as the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP). Zimbabweans who had arrived during the crisis period of 2008-2009 had full freedoms, but no rights to citizenship even for their children, for as long as the permits allowed.
In 2021, home affairs decided to end the special dispensation after a period of grace lasting till the end of 2022 to allow Zimbabweans to regularise their circumstances. Some were expected to be able to obtain residence and work rights based on their skills and occupations, and others were to return to Zimbabwe.
The number of people affected by the ruling is estimated at around 178 000 who remained on their ZEPs. Children born in SA were expected to obtain Zimbabwean citizenship and were not allowed SA citizenship.
The number of 178 000 is relatively small number with the total number of immigrants in South Africa, estimated at 3.96 million by Statistics SA.
Many of the registered Zimbabweans are educated and skilled. Most have been successfully living in SA for 15 years. Why not simply regularise all the law-abiding Zimbabweans living under the permit? Elsewhere around the world, larger numbers of irregular migrants have been regularised.
In SA, Mozambican refugees were regularised after the end of the Mozambican civil war. But the current anti-migrant sentiment in SA made such a course difficult for the minister of home affairs. This is why he opposed a court action he pretty much knew he would lose.
I have been studying migration policy on the continent, including the African Union’s adoption of a protocol on the free movement of people in 2018, which I have argued could facilitate economic growth and trade integration.
Migration policy in SA seems to be constantly in flux. Most of the Immigration Policy White Paper passed by Cabinet in 2017 has never been implemented. Policy documents and a law amendment on labour migration published a year and a half ago are

still in limbo. A promised new White Paper on immigration has not yet been published.
Some of the proposals could have simplified migration rules, such as a proposal to replace the critical skills list with a points system, while others such as the quota system proposed in the draft law would have added further complexities.
Will any reforms be implemented before the general election of 2024? Probably not. This is the fundamental problem.
Immigration policy is so highly politicised that the government seems afraid to move. While politicians frequently voice sentiments hostile to migration and migrants, sensible policies in practice and on the table are shrouded in camouflage and occasionally sneaked through.
One example is the corporate labour permit, another is the rising number of African countries with visa-free access to SA. Access to skilled employees needed from beyond our borders is being simplified. Reforms will be hidden behind a veil of hostility to foreigners.
A textbook on migration warns us, when it comes to migration policies, “not to equate political rhetoric with policy practice”.
It is not surprising that in many countries migration policies seem confused or incomprehensible. Migration policy reform seems elusive in the context of such opacity. And yet, effective African economic development depends on economic integration.
Most countries are pretty small, especially economically, and effective integration entails the movement of persons across borders without excessive hindrances. Not all African governments, even of richer countries, have been as hesitant as SA to reform migration policies.
Members of both the East African Community (EAC) and the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) have made greater progress than regions at the southern and northern ends of the continent. Countries in Africa can learn not only from experiences in the EU or in South America, but also from other African countries.
The New South Institute is running the Migration Governance Reform in Africa project. We are studying migration policy and practice in four African countries: SA, Mozambique, Kenya and Nigeria, and in four regional organisations, SADC, the EAC, Ecowas and the African Union. There are some exciting examples of reform on the African continent.
In east and west Africa, there are many ways to allow cross-border migrants access for different periods and reasons. Even in southern Africa, the recent agreement between Namibia and Botswana on travel by citizens of the two countries across their common border with identity documents alone shows what progress is possible. V.4928

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.

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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.
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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