The Constitutional Court has ruled that parts of the Immigration Act are unconstitutional.

• The Constitutional Court has declared sections of the Immigration Act invalid and unconstitutional as they discriminate against foreign divorced and separated parents.
• According to the act, a foreigner on a spousal visa must leave the country when their relationship with a South African ends, even if they have children together.
• The court gave Parliament 24 months to make the necessary amendments to the act, so it is consistent with the Constitution.
The Constitutional Court has declared sections of the Immigration Act to be inconsistent with the Constitution and invalid because they violate the right to human dignity and family life.
The Immigration Act requires foreign parents on a spousal visa to quit their jobs and leave the country if they divorce or are separated from their South African partners and can only apply for a new visa while they are outside the country.
The matter was taken to the Constitutional Court by a group of foreign parents who had either divorced or separated from their South African partners and stood to lose their visas.
The group was made up of parents of different nationalities who have children in the country.
The parents had entered South Africa on spousal visas. They were either separated or divorced from their South African spouses and partners they were with when they received the visas.
The group approached the apex court for a confirmatory order from the Western Cape High Court, which found that the act discriminates against divorced and separated parents.
The court declared sections 10 (6), 11 (6), and 18 (2) of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002 and regulation 9 (9) (a) of the Immigration Regulations, 2014 published under GN R413 in the Government Gazette inconsistent with the Constitution and are therefore invalid.
It says a foreigner who holds a spousal visa and is the parent of a child who is a citizen or permanent resident, and who is currently fulfilling their responsibilities to that child, must cease working or leave the country because that foreigner`s good faith spousal

relationship has ended.
In its judgment, the Constitutional Court gave Parliament two years to make necessary amendments to the act to ensure that it was consistent with the Constitution.
Newsletter
The time for taking a backseat is over. The road to the 2024 election requires effort from all of us. Start by keeping informed. We commit to giving you factual, honest news ahead of this landmark poll if you pledge to make your mark and show up for your country.
`In terms of the Immigration Act, a condition of the grant of a spousal visa is that the person to whom it is granted must live together with the other person in a good-faith spousal relationship or marriage.
The judgment reads:
If they do not live with such a person, they are in breach of the conditions of the spousal visa. If they have a job in South Africa at the time of the termination of the marriage or the good faith spousal relationship, they are not allowed to continue working in South Africa. They are required to leave South Africa and commit a criminal offence each day they remain in South Africa.
The judgment noted that if the foreign national needs to work in South Africa to survive, they suddenly will have no means of earning their livelihood once they are not allowed to work.
The court also said if there is a child born out of the marriage or the good faith spousal relationship between the foreign national and the South African citizen or permanent resident, that child will be adversely affected by the fact that the foreign national â€` who may be his or her father or mother â€` is not allowed to work once the spousal visa has expired.
The court, however, dismissed an appeal of a Zimbabwean father, who had entered the country illegally.
According to court documents, the Department of Home Affairs declared the man undesirable after it had found that he had been entering and leaving the country without proper documentation. The court said the man had approached it `with dirty hands` and dismissed his application. V.5107

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article

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
Click here for full article