Lawyers for Human Rights takes this issue to the High Court next month.
Lawyers for Human Rights, representing the Scalabrini Centre, is heading to the court next month to apply for an urgent interdict to prevent the arrests of new asylum seekers. Archive
• Thousands of people coming into South Africa from war-torn countries or countries rife with political unrest, say they live in constant fear of being arrested.
• This is despite their numerous attempts, some since 2020, to apply for asylum at the Department of Home Affairs, but to no avail.
• According to leaders of immigrant communities in Diepsloot, they are aware of at least 15 people currently held at the Lindela Repatriation Centre due to their inability to apply for asylum documents.
• Lawyers for Human Rights, representing the Scalabrini Centre, is taking this issue to the High Court next month.
An Ethiopian man who has been living and working in Diepsloot, Gauteng for nearly four years says he fears being arrested each time he walks out of his home. This is because he has been struggling for years to get legal asylum documents.
Ahmed, 24, (name changed to protect identity) said he arrived in South Africa during the lockdown in 2020 after running away from political unrest in his hometown of Tigray in Ethiopia, in which thousands of people, particularly young men, were killed.
Refugee reception offices were still closed when he arrived, so Ahmed could not immediately apply for asylum. In 2021, he submitted an application online but did not get a response.
He said he has been arrested by police on more than one occasion for not having the proper paperwork but is always released when he shows them proof that he is awaiting feedback on the application he submitted.
In 2023, Ahmed was arrested again and detained at the Desmond Tutu Refugee Centre. He travelled there to get answers about his pending application but was arrested instead. He was later released after being booked for another interview. He returned to the centre several times since then and is yet to get an asylum permit. “I don’t know what to do. I’m afraid of being deported because back home in Ethiopia it is not safe,” he said.
Another Ethiopian national from Diepsloot, Salmar (name changed to protect identity), arrived in South Africa in May 2024. Police detained him a few days after his arrival. He was released on bail after explaining his intention to apply for asylum.
He has also been to the refugee centre several times and was turned away each time without getting any help.
Ahmed and Salmar are among more than 10,000 asylum seekers and refugees who have sought help from Lawyers for Human Rights

since 2020.
According to Daniel Sherrif, leader of the Ethiopian Community in Diepsloot, five new asylum seekers have been detained by police, while five others are being held at the Lindela Repatriation Center due to their inability to apply for asylum documents.
This is in addition to five other Congolese nationals also being held at Lindela because they have not been able to get help to apply for documents.
In May, the Scalabrini Centre in Cape Town, represented by Lawyers for Human Rights, approached the courts for an interdict to prevent authorities from arresting and detaining new asylum seekers, the lawyers said in a statement. This matter will be argued at the High Court in August.
Court battle looms
Meanwhile, Lawyers for Human Rights has raised concerns with the frequency of cases in which asylum applicants being arrested while at or on their way to refugee reception centres. “New applicants for asylum have been subject to arrest, detention, and deportation without the opportunity to undergo a refugee status determination interview. This process effectively denies individuals access to the asylum system, leaving them vulnerable to deportation to their home countries, where they face persecution, violence, war, detention, or even death.”
Sharon Ekambaram, who manages Lawyers for Human Rights, said the organisation’s offices in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, and Musina have been inundated with more than 10,000 cases of asylum seekers and refugees facing documentation challenges since 2020.
Embakaram said most of the asylum seekers they have been assisting are yet to to have their applications finalised. This adds to the Department of Home Affairs’ already-existing refugee backlog, said Ekambaram.
“Home Affairs is doing nothing to make the process of applying for asylum and refugee documents accessible, and this must change,” she told GroundUp.
Claudia Marie Bernard Kayitane, director of the immigrant advocacy organisation Pax Afrika Network, said: “Laws that observe the right to protection for refugees continue to fail us. A lack of documentation exposes them to increased insecurity.”
Requests for comment sent to the Department of Home Affairs since 21 June have received no response.
Correction on 2024-07-18 09:31
This article previously incorrectly stated that Lawyers for Human Rights will be taking the matter to the Constitutional Court. The case will in fact be heard at the High Court in Cape Town on 27 August. V.5537

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.

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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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