Legal grievances against the South African Department of Home Affairs, including contempt of court cases, are depressingly common.

Too frequently the minister has to apologise to a court, or to ask for more time, on behalf of the department.Most of the court cases involve the operations of the department regarding visas and permits for foreign visitors, immigrants and prospective refugees.Just a few months ago home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi said, in legal papers: “I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere apology to the Chief Justice, all judges of the high court and Constitutional Court, the President of South Africa, Minister of Finance, Lawyers for Human Rights and its legal representatives and the people of South Africa for the mess created by officials of the Department of Home Affairs.”

This particular mess was triggered by the minister’s failure to amend an unconstitutional law which allowed for the detention of irregular migrants for 120 days. The rotten state of the department is widely known. Two reports released in the last three years, commissioned by the minister and the presidency and led by senior and seasoned individuals, set out the problems in detail.

One, released in 2022, chronicled a backlog of visa, permit and status applications, evidence of fraudulent applications being first rejected, then accepted, and the system being used illegally.

The other found multiple failures in the provision of visas to senior business managers and experts.The issue of migration policy and its implementation has never been more pressing for South Africa. Immigration has grown relatively rapidly in the past 20 years.

The proportion of migrants to local people more than doubled from a relatively low level of 2.1% in 2000 to a moderate level of 4.8% in 2020, according to a study drawing on UN data.

The global average immigrant population is around 3.5% but countries like the US (nearly 16% in 2019), Australia and New Zealand are much higher. Côte d’Ivoire is the only country on the continent with a considerably higher percentage of immigrants than South Africa.Migration policy is likely to be a key issue in South Africa’s forthcoming elections. A leading journalist has argued that 2024 will be an “immigration election”.

Populist parties are expected to mobilise around people’s fears, while the government will continue to use immigration as an excuse for poor service delivery and joblessness.The reality is that the impact of migrants on the circumstances of poor South Africans is marginal, and far less important than the very poor performance of the economy and many governmental institutions.In a paper just published I examine the recent history of immigration policy in South Africa.

I argue that the challenges would best be addressed by improvement in the operations of the Department of Home Affairs.This should be accompanied by some modernisation of migration law to encourage the use of regular migration channels and discourage irregularity.The problems,The first of the two investigations initiated by the minister was headed by Cassius Lubisi, former secretary of the cabinet. The second was headed by anti-apartheid struggle stalwart Mavuso Msimang.

Their main findings were as follows.

Fraudulent documentation was used in 36,647 applications for visas, permits or status over a 16-year period. Of these, 880 were approved and 288 were pending. 4,160 of the fraudulent applications were first rejected, and then accepted after reconsideration.Systems that had been replaced were still being used illegally from time to time. The outcomes of such activities were suspicious.

In some cases applications were processed in zero days. The investigation found visa expiry dates issued beyond the legal limit.

The department’s databases for naturalisation and population registration didn’t correlate with each other.

The list identifying undesirable immigrants was “fatally flawed due to incomplete and missing crucial data”.

In some cases, files had been inserted illegally into the information system. This process would require “a highly skilled IT user with administrator rights to execute”.

There were multiple cases of “forum-shopping” by applicants. This is when an applicant applies for a range of unrelated permits in the hope that one of them will get through.

The department did not have systems that could identify multiple applications by the same person.
Possible fixes

The Department of Home Affairs recently issued a draft white paper which it said was aimed at addressing the problems that had been identified.

It proposed severely curtailing the rights of prospective refugees, restricting paths to citizenship, and strengthening the Border Management Authority and supportive institutions.

But, based on my findings, it is clear that these changes won’t solve the problems. Experts show that tighter restrictions lead to greater illegality, not less migration.

The most disappointing element of

the draft white paper is that it makes no reference to recommendations made in the two reports on the problems at the department.

Recommendations of the reports included:

major investment in and reorganisation of information systems
the integration of the various population databases
further forensic investigations to root out corruption
hiring and training staff with skills and integrity.

The draft white paper also does not mention the need to modernise the colonial-style bilateral labour agreements which South Africa maintains with five regional neighbours Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi and Botswana.

These countries, and Zimbabwe, are the greatest source of regular and irregular migration.

These agreements are no longer fit for purpose. Firstly, they impose tight restrictions on the rights of contracted migrants from other countries.

Secondly, they are based on patterns of migrant labour developed during the colonial period to support farming and mining. In some cases applications were processed in zero days. The investigation found visa expiry dates issued beyond the legal limit.

The department’s databases for naturalisation and population registration didn’t correlate with each other.

The list identifying undesirable immigrants was “fatally flawed due to incomplete and missing crucial data”.

In some cases, files had been inserted illegally into the information system. This process would require “a highly skilled IT user with administrator rights to execute”.

There were multiple cases of “forum-shopping” by applicants. This is when an applicant applies for a range of unrelated permits in the hope that one of them will get through.

The department did not have systems that could identify multiple applications by the same person.
Possible fixes

The Department of Home Affairs recently issued a draft white paper which it said was aimed at addressing the problems that had been identified.

It proposed severely curtailing the rights of prospective refugees, restricting paths to citizenship, and strengthening the Border Management Authority and supportive institutions.

But, based on my findings, it is clear that these changes won’t solve the problems. Experts show that tighter restrictions lead to greater illegality, not less migration.

The most disappointing element of the draft white paper is that it makes no reference to recommendations made in the two reports on the problems at the department.

Recommendations of the reports included:

major investment in and reorganisation of information systems
the integration of the various population databases
further forensic investigations to root out corruption
hiring and training staff with skills and integrity.

The draft white paper also does not mention the need to modernise the colonial-style bilateral labour agreements which South Africa maintains with five regional neighbours Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi and Botswana.

These countries, and Zimbabwe, are the greatest source of regular and irregular migration.

These agreements are no longer fit for purpose. Firstly, they impose tight restrictions on the rights of contracted migrants from other countries.

Secondly, they are based on patterns of migrant labour developed during the colonial period to support farming and mining.
Thirdly, they’re written up on the basis of an unequal relationship between countries of the southern African region.

Modern bilateral labour agreements have been developed. An example is the Canadian system.

It provides for long term arrangements with full labour and social rights for the duration of the multiyear contract, but no right to permanent residence for the workers or their families.

Modern Canadian-style migrant labour agreements would encourage more migrants to choose regular migration routes and fewer would try to evade or abuse the law.

The draft white paper gives the impression that the challenge of migration policy can be solved with tighter laws on refugees and citizenship.

In fact the fundamental problem is the corruption and inefficiency in the permits and visa section of the department, which the white paper hardly mentions.

The unfortunate conclusion that can be drawn from a reading of the draft white paper is that it was designed primarily to give the ruling party a narrative for the upcoming election, rather than to reform the migration governance regime.

This article, written by Alan Hirsch, was republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. V.5225

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