+27 (0)82 373 8415 info@sami.co.za Client Area login Assessment Form Visa Renewal Services


News Articles

Court ruling will legalise dependents of asylum seekers

Source: Goundup, 20/06/2019


On Wednesday, the Western Cape High Court handed down a court order
that allows the dependents of asylum seekers and refugees to legalise
their status in South Africa in a process known as ‘family-joining’.
Dependents are defined as spouses, children and other dependents of
asylum seekers.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Scalabrini Centre hailed the
court order as “life-changing”.
The Scalabrini Centre, represented by the Refugee Rights Unit at the
University of Cape Town and Advocate Suzanna Harvey, took the matter
to court in 2016.
The organisation said that many applicants had experienced barriers in
the family joining process.
“Wives, husbands, children, and other dependents of asylum applicants
and refugees have been left with no way to document themselves in
South Africa. They have been forced into an undocumented state,
placing them in a position that is vulnerable to exploitation,
detention and arrest,” said the statement.
“With documentation, these families no longer need to fear arrest and
detention, can work legally, and can enrol their children in school
without administrative barriers,” it said.
“As refugees cannot return to their country due to conflict or
persecution, maintaining a family unit that is documented together is
an important part of building stability and ensuring proper refugee
protection in South Africa,” the statement said.
The organisation said, “Dependents are now able to apply to be
documented as either through family joining or on their own grounds.
Certain documents need to be provided where possible, such as a
marriage certificate or birth certificate. This is regardless of where
the marriage or birth took place and affidavits are to be submitted in
the absence of such documents.
“This family joining is to be completed regardless of whether the
dependents were included in the applicant’s original asylum
application or not. Should there be ‘serious doubts’ about the
validity of a parents’ claim over their child, DHA can request a DNA
test,” said the Scalabrini Centre.
On Friday, Home Affairs spokesperson said the order was based on an
agreement between the department, Scalabrini and the UNHCR.
“Refugees and asylum seekers were never denied this right if they had
complied with the processes on arrival in the country. Problems arose
when a person would go to our centre and claim that he or she is no
longer single but married, or where people would say they have
children but had forgotten to declare that they had children on their
application,” he said.


Search

Search

Latest News

  •    This was revealed in the 2025 Easter border operations report, which saw border management authority officials, saps officers and home affairs workers intensify efforts to prevent illegal travel into the country over the holiday period.JOHANNESBURG - Zimbabwean nationals have been identified as the leading individuals attempting to illegally gain entry into South Africa.... Read more...
  •    THE High Court has nullified the re-registration of a birth certificate for a child born out of wedlock, ordering the Registrar-General to strike it from the records.This ruling declared the birth certificate invalid, questioning the legality of attributing paternity to a deceased man decades after his death.The dispute arose from a contested inheritance involving the late Lazarus Mkudu’s estate.Teresiah Mkudu, the applicant, sought a declaratory order to invalidate Ruvimbo Manyonda’s birth certificate, issued nearly 20 years after Mkudu’s death.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
  •    Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...
South Africa Immigration Company