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Civic services
Introduction
The Department of Home Affairs provides individual
status-determination services.
The department has a network of offices in all
provinces. Mobile offices or units service areas on
a regular pre-arranged basis where the
establishment of fixed offices is not warranted.
The department is divided into five functionalsupport
and two line-function divisions.
Statutory bodies falling under the department
are the:
The Government Printing Works (GPW), a division of
the Department of Home Affairs, provides printing,
stationery and related services to all government
departments, provincial governments and
municipalities.
It also publishes, markets and distributes
government publications. Based in Pretoria, the
printing works provides a variety of related services
to departments, the printing industry and other
African countries, including manufacturing and
supplying fingerprint ink to the South African Police
Service (SAPS), and printing postage stamps for the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Lesotho.
In 2006/07, government allocated R212 000 to
the GPW, which has extended its services
tthroughout the region and continent. Early in 2007,
the GPW won the contract to provide the African Union (AU) with
diplomatic and service passports, which were
delivered on Africa Day on 25 May 2007. In May, the
GPW also printed examination papers for Malawi.
The GPW was expected to establish a forensiclaboratory
capability to analyse passports, identity
documents (IDs), visa labels or any other highsecurity
face-value documents to complement
other law-enforcement agencies in the fight
against identity fraud.
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Civic services
The Branch: Civic Services is mainly responsible for
population registration and civic services. Population
registration entails recording personal
particulars in the Population Register with a view to
issuing IDs; identification by means of fingerprints
and photographs; and dealing with matters pertaining to the status of persons, such as births,
marriages and deaths.
Civic services entail issuing passports,
registering foreign births, determining citizenship,
and issuing certificates of naturalisation or
resumption of South African citizenship.
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Citizenship matters
South African citizenship is regulated by the South
African Citizenship Act, 1995 [PDF] (Act 88 of 1995), and
regulations issued in terms thereof. South African
citizenship may be granted by way of:
- birth or descent
- an application for naturalisation as a South
African citizen
- an application for resumption of South African
citizenship
- the registration of the birth of children born
outside South Africa to South African fathers or
mothers
- an application for exemption in terms of
Section 26(4) of the Act.
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Population Register
The current Population Register hosted by the
Department of Home Affairs stores and provides
citizenry-identification information, including
unique identification numbers, addresses, birth
dates and marriage status. Information on this
system is used for various purposes, including
identity validation. In essence, this system forms
the core of citizenry-information systems within the
department.
Evolving technology, modern government
structures and the need for more secure systems
led to the department embarking on a programme
to re-engineer the Population Register. This will
align its function with the current government
dispensation and future needs of both the
Government and third-party institutions. This
project is closely aligned with the implementation
of the Home Affairs National Identification System
(Hanis), which was approved by government in
January 1996.
The focus of the project is on providing a more
scalable, adaptable, efficient, secure and
interoperable database. Features will allow
integration with the automated biometric fingerprint system, information sourcing from
the electronic document-management system,
an electronic web-based query system, and
interrogation from the different deconsole units.
By June 2007, the Hanis disaster-recovery site
had been fully implemented.
Some R207 million was spent to create the
disaster-recovery system at a secure location,
which backs up all home affairs records every 15
minutes on a continual basis.
By June 2007, the digitisation of about 29 million
sets of fingerprints had been completed, which
were backed up as an essential part of the Hanis.
Progress is also being made in digitally capturing
the birth, marriage and death records of citizens
under the Electronic Data-Management System,
through which a total of 57 million records had
been scanned. A further R167 million will be spent
on expanding this project.
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Immigration
Immigration
The Branch: Immigration is responsible for control
over the admission of foreigners for residence in
and departure from South Africa. This entails:
- processing applications for visas, temporary
residence permits and immigration permits
- maintaining a travellers’ and foreigners’ control
system
- tracing and removing foreigners who are
considered undesirable or who are in South
Africa illegally.
The Refugees Act, 1998 [PDF] (Act 130 of 1998), gives
effect within South Africa to the relevant
international legal instruments, principles and
standards relating to refugees; provides for the
reception into South Africa of asylum seekers;
regulates applications for and recognition of
refugee status; and provides for the rights and
obligations flowing from such status, and related
matters. The Act came into effect on 1 April 2000.
In recent years, the department has sought to
control illegal immigration through a variety of
measures:
The final immigration regulations came into effect on
1 July 2004. The release of these regulations followed
the signing of the Immigration Amendment Act, 2004 [PDF] (Act 19 of 2004), into law on 12 October 2004.
The immigration policy aims to:
- discourage illegal migration into South Africa by
encouraging foreign nationals to apply for different
permits to legalise their stay in the country
- create an enabling environment for foreign direct
investment in South Africa
- attract scarce skills required by the economy in
accordance with the 2014 vision of eradicating
poverty and underdevelopment.
The final immigration regulations furthermore aim
to establish a new system of immigration control to
ensure that:
- temporary and permanent residence permits are
issued as expeditiously as possible and
according to simplified procedures
- security considerations are fully satisfied and the
State regains control over the immigration of
foreigners to South Africa
- economic growth is promoted through the
employment of needed foreign labour, foreign
investment is facilitated, the entry of
exceptionally skilled or qualified people is
enabled, skilled HR are increased, and academic
exchange programmes in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) are facilitated
- tourism is promoted
- the contribution of foreigners to the South African
labour market does not adversely affect existing
labour standards and the rights and expectations
of South African workers
- a policy connection is maintained between
foreigners working in South Africa and the
training of South African citizens
- a human rights-based culture of enforcement is
promoted.
The Directorate: Refugee Affairs manages refugee
services in South Africa. It has established the
Asylum Seekers Unit and Country of Origin
Information Unit.
These units advise refugee-reception offices on
policy-related matters and on the background
information of an applicant’s country of origin. After being recognised, refugees are issued with refugee
IDs, which give them access to the basic services
in South Africa, including basic healthcare,
education and employment.
The South African Government, through the
Department of Home Affairs, issues UN travel
documents to refugees. Since May 2005, refugees
have been issued with a refugee smart ID, which
contains security features that are not forgeable.
This directorate seeks to professionalise the
functioning of the refugee regime in preparation for
mass influxes in the future, the main focus as a
measurement point being the 2010 Soccer World
Cup. The department also seeks to assist those
who wish to return to their countries of origin after
changes in the circumstances that led to their
forced migration, by engaging in campaigns of
voluntary repatriation jointly with the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees, and later declaration
and application of cessation clauses, e.g. the
Angolan Repatriation Programme.
The Directorate: Information Co-ordination
manages information on the National Immigration
Branch to facilitate regional and national
operations.
The directorate’s main objectives are to:
- establish an information repository, which acts
on risks and urgent immigration matters
- ensure dynamic real-time support on tactical
and legal matters to immigration officers
globally.
By mid-2007, a turnaround project for immigration
control was being implemented. It includes:
- establishing an integrated refugee-information
system
- developing a draft protocol on the smuggling of
human beings
- ratifying an SADC protocol on free movement of
people
- developing a new secure passport system
- capacitating the Department of Home Affairs’
immigration branch, as part of the department’s
turnaround strategy.
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Visas
Foreigners who wish to enter South Africa must be
in possession of valid and acceptable travel
documents. They must have valid visas, except in the case of certain countries whose citizens are exempt
from visa control. Such exemptions are normally
limited to permits, which are issued for 90 days or
less at the ports of entry. The visa system is aimed
at facilitating the admission of acceptable foreigners
at ports of entry. The visa becomes a permit upon
entry, therefore no additional permit will be issued.
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Control of travellers
The travel documents of persons entering or
departing South Africa are examined by immigration
officers at recognised ports of entry, to determine
whether such persons comply with the
requirements.
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Control of sojourn
Foreigners who are in the country illegally and who
are therefore guilty of an offence may be classified
into three categories, namely those who:
- entered the country clandestinely
- failed to renew the temporary residence
permits issued to them at ports of entry
- breached the conditions of their temporary
residence permits without permission, e.g.
holiday visitors who took up employment or
started their own businesses.
Depending on the circumstances, persons who are
in South Africa illegally are either prosecuted,
removed, or their sojourn is legalised. Officers at
the various regional and district offices of the
department are in charge of tracing, prosecuting
and removing illegal foreigners from the country.
Employers of illegal foreigners may also be
prosecuted.
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Permanent residence
Government allows immigration on a selective
basis. The Department of Home Affairs is
responsible for:
- Processing applications for immigration permits
for consideration.
- Admitting persons suitable for immigration, such
as skilled workers in occupations in which there
is a shortage in South Africa. The department
particularly encourages applications by industrialists
and other entrepreneurs who wish to relocate their
existing concerns or to establish new concerns
in South Africa.
The department is not directly involved in an active
immigration drive. In categories where shortages
exist, the normal procedure is for employers to
recruit abroad independently, and in most cases,
initially apply for temporary work permits.
The department considers the applications for
immigration permits of prospective immigrants
who wish to settle in the relevant provinces. In
terms of new regulations, regions will be
responsible for issuing permits previously issued by
the regional committees in respect of permanent
residence. They will also do so in respect of
temporary residence. Enquiries in this regard may
be made to the nearest office of the Department of
Home Affairs in South Africa, to missions abroad, or
to the Director-General of Home Affairs for the
attention of the Directorate: Permitting in Pretoria.
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Temporary residence
In terms of the Immigration Act, 2002, temporary
residence permits are divided into the following
categories:
- visitor’s permits
- diplomatic permits
- study permits
- treaty permits
- business permits
- crew permits
- medical permits
- relative’s permits
- work permits with the following categories:
- quota work permits
- general work permits
- intra-company transfer work permits
- exceptional skills work permits
- corporate work permits
- retired person permits
- exchange permits
- asylum permits.
In terms of Section 11, a visitor’s permit may be
issued to a person who intends to enter South
Africa for less than 90 days for the purpose of
tourism, business, education or medical treatment.
Foreigners who are exempt from visa
requirements, or who are citizens of countries that
are exempt from visa requirements for 90 days,
may therefore proceed to a port of entry where
visitors’ permits for the mentioned period will be
issued, provided such persons can produce
evidence to prove their bona fides.
Foreigners who are citizens of countries that are
exempted from visa requirements for less than
90 days may likewise obtain visitors’ permits at a port of entry. Such foreigners enjoy exemption for
the period only. Foreigners who require a visa prior
to proceeding to South Africa, or who intend to
enter South Africa for any period longer than the
period for which they are exempt from the visa
requirement, must apply for and obtain a visa prior
to proceeding to the country.
Foreigners who intend to accept an offer of
employment, start a business, take up studies or
enter South Africa for any purpose for which a
temporary residence permit is provided for in the
Act, must apply for an appropriate temporary
residence permit via the South African diplomatic
representative in their countries of origin/
residence. In countries where there are no
representatives, applications must be submitted in
the nearest country where there is a foreign
representative.
The outcome must be awaited outside South
Africa and applicants may only proceed to South
Africa once the permit as applied for has been
issued to them.
The overriding consideration when dealing with
applications for work permits is whether the
employment or task to be undertaken cannot be
performed by a South African citizen or an
approved permanent immigrant already residing in
South Africa.
Applications for the extension of temporary
residence permits must be submitted at least 30
days prior to the expiry date of the permit, to the
nearest regional/district office of the Department of
Home Affairs where the applicant is employed. Any
enquiries related to temporary residence permits
may be directed to the nearest district/regional
office of the Department of Home Affairs in South
Africa, to South African diplomatic representatives
abroad, or to the Director-General of Home Affairs,
for the attention of the Directorate: Permitting.
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Removal of undesirable persons
In terms of legislation, the Minister of Home Affairs
may order the deportation of any person who is
declared undesirable or prohibited, other than an
asylum seeker.
These are foreign nationals who are in South
Africa illegally and should be deported to the
countries of which they are citizens or territories
where they have rights of domicile or residence.
Any person who has become a deportation subject
may, pending his or her deportation, be detained in a
manner and at a place determined by the Director-
General of the Department of Home Affairs.
Source: South Africa Yearbook 2007/08
Editor: D Burger. Government Communication and Information System
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Last modified: 24 April 2008 08:46:02.
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