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Asylum seekers win right to renew permits in Cape Town

Source: Times Live, 03/06/2016

The Cape Town High Court on Friday ordered the Department of Home
Affairs to renew asylum seeker permits of refugees whose applications
it had refused because they initially applied at another refugee
reception office.

This confirmed an order given previously in this matter‚ and extended
the relief to all persons similarly situated.

"The respondents are directed to extend/renew forthwith at the Cape
Town Temporary Refugee Facility‚ the asylum seeker permits of the
individual asylum seekers listed… and of all similarly situated asylum
seekers living in the Western Cape whose asylum seeker permits were
originally obtained… for a period of no less than three months‚" the
order states.

On April 28 last year‚ Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) went to court on
behalf of 450 people who had been refused renewals at the Cape Town
Refugee Reception Office (CTRRO). An initial order was granted by the
court on August 31‚ allowing for the renewal of the asylum seeker
permits at the CTRRO.

"The sole reason that they were refused renewals was that their
permits were first issued at an RRO (Refugee Reception Office) other
than Cape Town. Other RROs‚ namely Durban‚ Musina or Pretoria‚ are
many thousands of kilometres away from the place that these asylum
seekers call home: Cape Town. Asylum seeker permits have to be renewed
every three to six months.

"Thereafter‚ the matter was postponed for further argument regarding
the specific request that the CTRRO should renew the permits of all
asylum seekers similarly situated to that of the initial 450. The
matter was postponed until November 2015‚" LHR`s spokesperson Claire
Martens said.

"Being forced to leave their homes and travel‚ often for more than a
week‚ in order to renew their papers every few months‚ places asylum
seekers in precarious positions.

"Many asylum seekers cannot afford the travel and accommodation costs
incurred in securing the renewal of their papers. Others cannot take
the time off work and their children have to miss school‚" Martens said.

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If you are visiting SA or already here on a visa, take this as a public-interest warning. In 2025, a quiet, but sharp, shift has taken hold inside parts of home affairs adjudication ranks: applications are being refused almost mechanically if they were not submitted at least 60 days before visa expiry.A wave of refusals repeating near-identical wording:The applicant did not submit his/her application no less than 60 days prior to the expiry date of his/her.

The rigid application of this rule, devoid of consideration for mitigating circumstances, raises serious concerns about the fairness and legality of such administrative decisions.

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