Johannesburg - Minister of Home Affairs Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says his department is on course to appoint border control guards including border management commissioners in their drive to bring to end illegal movement of people into South Africa.

Motsoaledi made the announcement as South Africa is experiencing an influx of people trying to illegally make their way into the country especially through the border gates of Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Lesotho.

The influx worsened recently in Zimbabwe after the government introduced stricter lockdown regulations where curfew was implemented as 6pm and 6am in that country prompting people to cause chaos at the Beitbridge border gate.

Some were on Thursday still converging at the border gate hoping to make their way to South Africa amid the presence of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) who were jointly manning the borders following a series of illegal crossing through the Limpopo River.

“We will soon establish border control guards, including appointing permanent commissioner of the Border Management Authority (BMA) soon after President Cyril Ramaphosa signs the BMA Bill into an Act of parliament. We want to appoint the border control guards to allow the army to continue to do their work of protecting the sovereignty of the country and the police to do their criminal investigations,” Motsoaledi said.

He, however, said he had asked the army and police in the meantime to intensify their operation after receiving reports that some of the illegal immigrants allegedly paid bribes to certain police officers to allow them to cross illegally to South Africa.

Equally concerned about the illegal crossing is Limpopo Health MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba, who raised the alarm about people trying to enter South Africa with false Covid-19 test results. Beitbridge border crossing staff discovered more than 50 people in the past weeks with fake Covid-19 tests while the Department of Health was enforcing regulations requiring anyone entering the country to produce a negative test, taken no more than 72 hours prior to a border crossing.

Due to the chaos, parliamentary portfolio committee on Home Affairs led by advocate Bongani Bongo had this week visited various ports in the country – a day after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the closure of 20 land ports, which also included Beitbridge, Lebombo and Mbuzini.

Bongo said the solution to the problems of congestion at the border posts was through the establishment of One-Stop Border Post with neighbouring countries and the establishment of the Border Management Authority (BMA).

“On May 18, 2020, when the committee received a briefing from the department, it identified the One-Stop Border Post and BMA as pillars in the way of ensuring the smooth functioning of the border area and is thus concerned by the slow progress in implementing this policy position.

“To alleviate the perpetual crisis at this border, the government must move with speed to implement an already agreed policy position to establish a One-Stop border post. The tardiness in implementing this policy position is both unacceptable and a contributing factor to problems at this port of entry,” Bongo said.

Bongo said the aim of One-Stop Border Post was to improve the efficiency of movement at the port of entry which is something that is lacking at Beitbridge currently.

Yesterday, the portfolio committee was in Mbuzini and Lebombo to all witness congestion at those border gates. While there, immigration officials carried out various arrests of people who tried to cross into South Africa –they were arrested and then deported back to Mozambique.

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The Equal Education Law Centre says it has secured placement of more than 100 children in Matatiele for the 2020 academic year. The children were out of school due to lack of identity documentation.

All undocumented children, including children of illegal foreigners, are entitled to receive basic education, the high court in Makhanda in the Eastern Cape ruled on Thursday

The basic education department will in future be obliged to provide and fund a basic education for all undocumented children, including children of illegal foreigners.

It is estimated that the judgment will affect over a million undocumented children who are either seeking admission to public schools or who have been warned to provide documentation to avoid being excluded.

Eastern Cape judge president Selby Mbenenge set aside sections of the schools’ admission policy which in any way hindered undocumented children’s access to school.

He also set aside an Eastern Cape education department 2016 circular warning that the department would fund only children at schools who had valid documentation.

Mbenenge said that all provisions of the Immigration Act had to be interpreted to be in line with the constitution. This meant that it had to be read in a way that meant that it in no way prohibited the provision of a basic education to illegal foreign children.

Judge Irma Schoeman and acting judge SM Mfenyana agreed with Mbenenge.

The ground-breaking case, which will have national implications, kicked off when some 37 children in the Eastern Cape were denied access to school because they had no birth certificates, study permits or passports.

The Centre for Child Law and Phakamisa High School in Port Elizabeth, represented by the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), set out to challenge all the regulations and laws that inhibited undocumented children from accessing basic education. They successfully argued that they constituted an unjustifiable limitation on children’s constitutional right to basic education as well as their right to equality and dignity.

In a statement issued in response to the high court ruling, the LRC said a common yet false perception was that undocumented pupils must be “illegal foreigners” as all SA children have their births registered and are in possession of an identity document.

“According to the department of basic education, 998,433 children are currently attending school in SA, are undocumented, and cannot be accounted for by the department of home affairs. Only 16.7% of these learners are foreign nationals, while 83.2% are SA children whose parents, guardians or caregivers have not managed to secure birth certificates for them.

"... Many of these learners are growing up with extended family members who struggle to obtain the necessary documentation for the children when their parents are no longer around. The children are often born at home and their births are not registered within 30 days as provided for in the Birth and Death Registration Act. This is either due to a lack of resources to travel to the nearest home affairs office, or due to an inability to produce all the documents that are required by Home Affairs to register a birth.

"... This judgment is therefore predominantly affecting SA children who, through no fault of their own, are unable to secure the registration of their births.”

The Equal Education Law Centre hailed the judgment, describing it as a “phenomenal victory for children across SA”. The centre also shared that late last month, it had secured placement of more than 100 children in Matatiele for the 2020 academic year. The children were out of school due to lack of identity documentation

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Did you know that you may apply for permanent residence if you are a  relative ( parent ) of citizen or permanent residence holder within first level of kinship   . In other words you can apply via your child .

Changes to the Immigration regulations now permits a father or mother to apply for permanent residence via their child .

We have found in many of the marriages where for example the spouse or life partner is

on temporary residence , they have a child with a South African but don’t have the 5 years good faith relationship , did you know you could apply for permanent residence via your child

Please contact us and let us show you how .  

email us to info@samigration.com whatsapp me on:

 +27 82 373 8415, where are you now? check our website : www.samigration.com

Whatsapp  Tel No : +27 (0) 82 373 8415

Tel No office : +27 (0) 82 373 8415 ( Whatsapp )

Tel No admin : +27 (0) 64 126 3073
Tel No sales : +27 (0) 74 0366127
Fax No : 086 579 0155

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Kind Regards

KARACHI: The Civil Aviation Authority on Monday eased travel restrictions for inbound passengers travelling from the United Kingdom and South Africa.

The fresh guidelines were issued on the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) decision and will be effective January 5 and last till January 31.

As per the notification, Pakistani nationals with the short-term UK and South African visit visas and Pakistani passports, including work permit holders, or any type of visa issued by the British/ South African authorities are allowed to travel to Pakistan.

The CAA has also allowed diplomats and their families to travel to Pakistan from the UK and South Africa.

The passengers would need a negative PCR test result conducted 72 hours prior to travel. "However, any or all passengers traveling to Pakistan from the UK or South Africa will be subjected to PCR testing, quarantine or isolation and other stipulations as specified by the health authorities upon arrival in Pakistan," read the statement.

Additionally, passengers holding valid National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) or Pakistan Origin Card (POC) and having stayed in the UK or South Africa in the last 10 days prior may travel to Pakistan "with a negative PCR test conducted 72 hours prior to travel".

The guidelines said that "any and all passengers will also be subjected to Rapid Antigen Tests upon arrival in Pakistan whereby all negative testing passengers will be allowed to leave the airport with the advice to self-quarantine/ isolate for a period of five days".

Those who test positive will be subjected to quarantine at home until they test negative.

Countries including Pakistan placed travel restrictions and closed their borders to the United Kingdom after a new strain of the coronavirus was detected earlier this month.

The new strain, referred to by some experts as the B.1.17 lineage, is not the first variant of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is said to be up to 70% more transmissible than the previously dominant strain in the UK.

It has since been detected in some European countries, South Africa, India, Japan, and Pakistan.

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The UK remains the preferred destination for South Africans looking for great employment opportunities, a high standard of education and a good quality of life. Choosing the right visa can make the process of applying much simpler and can lead to a more successful application. These are your top UK visa options as a South African.

Applying for a UK ancestral visa

A UK Ancestry visa is one of the most sought-after UK visas because it allows you to live and work in the UK for five years, after which you can apply to remain in the UK permanently. Many South Africans who have a family link to the UK are unaware that they could be eligible for this visa.

To qualify, you must meet all of the following criteria:

• One of your grandparents was born in the UK
• You are a Commonwealth citizen
• You intend to work in the UK

You also need to be over 17 years old and have enough money to support yourself and any dependants joining you in the UK.

Benefits for partners and dependants of an UK ancestral visa holder

Your partner or family members can be included on your Ancestry visa application. This will allow them to move with you to the UK as soon as your visa application is approved. They will enjoy the same rights as the main visa holder – i.e. they too will be able to live and work in the UK for the duration of the Ancestry visa.

Should your dependants decide to join you at a later stage, they will still be able to apply for ILR when you do, even though they have lived in the UK for a shorter time.

A family link to the UK could also make you eligible for British citizenship

If your grandparent or even great-grandparent was born in the UK, you may qualify for UK citizenship. A British Citizenship Assessment can help you discover any possible routes to citizenship that you may be unaware of. The assessment is quick and free, and you’ll receive an instant response on the likelihood of qualifying for citizenship, with guidance on what to do next.

Applying for a UK work visa

Under the new immigration system, the Tier 2 (General) visa category has been replaced by the Skilled Worker route. This visa allows you to live and work in the UK for up to five years.

To apply, you need to have a job offer from and be sponsored by a UK-based employer.

The Skilled Worker visa is points-based, which means you’re awarded points for meeting certain requirements. You must obtain a total of 70 points to be eligible. If you’ve got a job offer for a role that meets the minimum skill level, you only need to have 50 points. In this case, you must be able to show evidence of your English language ability.

You will be allowed to trade characteristics, such as your qualifications, against a lower salary to get the required number of points. If the job offer is less than the minimum salary requirement, but no less than £20,480. You can still apply for a work visa if you have:

• A job offer in a specific shortage occupation
• A PhD relevant to the job
• A PhD in a STEM subject relevant to the job

Points are awarded for the following:

*You must meet all mandatory characteristics to qualify whereas other characteristics are tradeable to reach the 70-point threshold.

Intra-company transfers

The Intra-company Transfer route falls under the Skilled Worker visa. This route lets you transfer to your employer’s UK-based branch. To apply, you need to have been employed at the overseas branch for at least 12 months. This visa does not lead to settlement and British citizenship.

Get a UK spouse visa and move to the UK with your partner

You can apply for a UK spouse visa or partner visa if you’re in a relationship with a British citizen or someone with indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or settled status.

You and your partner must be over 18 and either in a civil partnership or marriage that’s recognised in the UK, in a relationship and living together for at least two years or planning to get married or become civil partners within six months of arriving in the UK.

Partner visas are valid for two and a half years, after which you can extend your visa for a further two and a half years.

Qualifying for British citizenship on an Ancestry visa, spouse visa or Skilled Worker visa

The good news is that the Ancestry visa, spouse visa and Skilled Work visa all lead to ILR and British citizenship. This is how you can obtain both statuses.

Step 1: Get indefinite leave to remain

ILR (also known as permanent residency) is the status you need before you can apply for citizenship. ILR allows you to stay in the UK indefinitely and leave and re-enter the country as often as you wish.

You’ll be eligible for ILR once you’ve stayed in the UK on a work, Ancestry or spouse visa for five continuous years. Since the spouse visa is only valid for two and a half years, you’ll need to extend your visa for a further two and a half years before you can apply.

Other requirements for ILR include:

• Passing the “Life in the UK Test”
• Meeting the English language requirements
• Be of good character

Step 2: Apply for British citizenship

Once you’ve held ILR status for 12 months, you can apply for British citizenship and get your British passport. You also need to meet the following requirements:

• Have lived in the UK for five years without spending more than 450 days outside the country before you apply (90 days per year)
• Be “of good character”, which means not behaving in ways that are criminal, deceiving or dishonest, and not breaching any immigration laws

If you’re married/in a partnership with a British citizen, you do not need to wait 12 months after ILR to apply for citizenship. You can apply immediately

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