We haven’t reversed the decision to end the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit: minister

Businesstech - 15 December 2021

 

Home Affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi says that the government is moving ahead with its plans to end the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit in South Africa.

This follows earlier reports that his department had withdrawn a circular on the decision on Monday (13 November), seemingly backtracking on the planned change that would force about 200,000 Zimbabweans to return home.

Speaking to radio station 702, Motsoaledi said that while the circular had been withdrawn, this was due to a clerical issue, not a change of policy. The government would not be renewing the permit, he said.

The policy was first introduced in 2009 by then-Home Affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, as a temporary solution to a growing refugee crisis related to Zimbabwe. While the dispensation was initially catering to a few thousand people, it quickly ballooned to over 400,000 individuals.

Motsoaledi said the permit was always supposed to be a temporary solution and was subsequently renewed three times over the last decade. The idea was never for Zimbabweans to stay in the country on the permit permanently.

The plan is to end the permit on 31 December and allow permit-holders to apply for different visas and permits – or face deportation after 12 months.

“There should not be any impression that the decision about terminating the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit – and then giving them a 12 month grace period to apply for other statuses – there is no withdrawal of that decision,” Motsoaledi said.

“What we have withdrawn is a circular that was issued by officials within the Department of Home Affairs – a circular explaining to the banks what they must do. That circular was wrong, it was not supposed to be issued. It was causing more confusion.

“But the initial decision to end the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit – nothing has changed, and nothing is going to change,” he said.

The decision to end the permits drew a chorus of complaints from human rights groups that threatened to mount a court challenge.

Activists have argued that Zimbabweans who have been living in South Africa for more than a decade were going to be sent back to a country with few economic opportunities and high levels of political repression.

The exemption only applied to Zimbabweans who entered South Africa before the arrangement was enacted in 2009.

According to government statistics, South Africa has a population of about 60 million, including about 3 million migrants. Many are Zimbabweans driven south by two decades of politically linked violence and economic collapse. The majority are undocumented and do not hold the permit.

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Applying for your Section 11(2) Visitors Visa with Work Conditions

This visa must be applied for abroad in your country of residence. Applications must be logged and processed by the responsible South African Embassy or consulate.

The Section 11 (2) Permits requires an approval letter which is a once off non-renewable permit allowing one to work in South Africa and cannot be changed into another type of permit in South Africa.

Only staff or  employed by a legitimate, registered entity will be granted this type of visa, but every application must be accompanied by a comprehensive explanation as to why the worker is needed to conduct short term work and here we will guide you in this process

We have done in excess of 1500 of these visas

The document must also be supported by a motivational letter from the applicant detailing why they are needed in South Africa and what the nature of their visit will be.

Note the Act allows for 1 extension for a maximum of 3 months whereupon applicant has to return to country of application or residence , ie you get 6 months and upon return home you can apply again and the process will repeat itself

Who does not qualify for a Section 11 Visitors Permit “Work Authorisations”?

In our experience it is however advisable to consult a professional immigration consultant such as SA Migration should you be unsure of which visa best suite your needs or if the visa bearer might need more than 90 days to conclude their business.

According to the South African Department of Home Affairs this type of visa will not be issued to the following occupations:

- Self-employed persons
- Contract Workers
- Exotic Dancers
- Project Management Workers
- Casual Labourers
- Seasonal Labourers
- Work Seeking Persons

Validity and Processing Times of the Section 11 (2) Visitors Permit

This visa expires 90 days after being issued and in our experience this visa is mostly processed within 30 days.

Note the Act allows for 1 extension for a maximum of 3 months whereupon applicant has to return to country of application or residence , ie you get 6 months and upon return home you can apply again and the process will repeat itself

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SA banks to keep Zimbabweans' accounts open following 'confusion'

Fin24 = 15 December 2021

South Africa withdrew a circular that prompted banks to threaten to close the accounts of a category of Zimbabwean immigrants who have a permit to live and work in the country from 1 January next year.

The circular sent to banks was withdrawn because it created confusion, Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said in an interview on Monday. Permit holders still have the right to stay in the country for another 12 months and should therefore have access to their accounts, he said.

On 25 November, South Africa’s Cabinet issued a statement saying that about 200 000 holders of the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit would see their permission to stay in the country expire on 31 December. They would then have a 12-month grace permit to apply for alternative permits under the usual immigration framework.

Cabinet’s decision to end the permits drew a chorus of complaints from human rights groups that threatened to mount a court challenge. They argued that Zimbabweans who have been living in South Africa for more than a decade were going to be sent back to a country with few economic opportunities and high levels of political repression.

The exemption only applied to Zimbabweans who entered South Africa before the arrangement was enacted in 2009.

The plan may result in Zimbabwean permit-holders’ lives being disrupted, with children denied the opportunity to register for school, employers refusing to renew work contracts, and banks denying services or withholding access to accounts, Sharon Ekambaram, head of the Refugee and Migrant Rights Programme at Lawyers for Human Rights in Johannesburg, said last month in a letter signed by 46 organisations. 

South Africa has a population of about 60 million, including about three million migrants, according to government statistics. Many are Zimbabweans driven south by two decades of politically linked violence and economic collapse. The majority are undocumented and do not hold the permit.

Cabinet voted to end the exemption program after the governing ANC suffered its worst ever electoral performance in municipal and national elections. ActionSA, an anti-immigrant party formed by former Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba, won 16% of the votes in the city in its first race and a large proportion of the ballots in the capital, Pretoria. 

South Africa has been plagued by recurrent bouts of xenophobic violence since at least 2008, with foreigners often accused of taking jobs in a country where a third of the workforce is unemployed.

www.samigration.com

Zimbabweans head to court over government’s decision not to renew immigration permits

Money Web -  13 Dec 2021 

 

Hundreds of thousands could find themselves out of work, without bank accounts, or unable to return to SA after the December break.

 

The Beitbridge border between South Africa and Zimbabwe near Musina. Image: Guillem Sartorio/AFP/Getty Images

The Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) Holders Association and non-profit organisation African Amity have brought an urgent application before the High Court in Johannesburg to overturn the decision by the director-general of Home Affairs not to renew permits granted to more than 250 000 Zimbabweans in SA.

The permits expire at the end of December 2021, after which the Department of Home Affairs has instructed them to apply for “mainstream visas” and to ensure that their applications comply with the provisions and requirements of the Immigration Act and its accompanying regulations.

The Home Affairs directive goes on to advise companies, employers, learning institutions and banks to discontinue services to those in possession of a ZEP expiring on December 31, unless they submit proof of their application for a mainstream visa.

‘Impossible’ task

Emma Dimairho, deposing for African Amity, says this requirement is impossible to meet, “unreasonable, unfair, cruel and leaves thousands of ZEP holders in jeopardy of losing their jobs” as well as financial services. The decision by Home Affairs will cause irreparable harm unless the court intervenes on an urgent basis, says the court application.

The case will be heard on an urgent basis on Tuesday, December 14. Also cited as respondents, who are opposing the matter, are President Cyril Ramaphosa, the minister of Home Affairs and the cabinet.

ZEPs and its predecessors have been in existence since 2009 and were an attempt to regularise the residence status of those Zimbabweans residing illegally in SA due to political and economic instability at home.

The ZEP Holders Association launched a separate case in October to have the Gauteng High Court declare them permanent residents, as their existing permits are due to expire at the end of this year.

Neither the minister nor the director-general of Home Affairs filed opposing affidavits in this matter, though they did file a notice of intention to oppose on November 8.

Two weeks later, on November 24, Home Affairs decided not to renew the ZEP permit.

Police clearance hurdle

Dimairho explains that it is impossible for permit holders to comply with the government’s latest directive and remain legal in SA, as they would have to obtain police clearances from both SA and Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe, this process typically takes six weeks.

“The Zimbabwean police clearance can only be obtained in Zimbabwe, and requires fingerprints obtained there.

“No ZEP holder, currently in South Africa, can obtain the police clearance,” says Dimairho’s affidavit.

“The 29 November 2021 decision for this reason alone cannot be complied with by many ZEP holders currently in the Republic.”

Many ZEP holders are either in Zimbabwe or planning to go home for the festive season. The 10-day quarantine period in force in Zimbabwe prevents them from obtaining police clearance before the expiry of the ZEP at the end of December.

Rock and a hard place

Home Affairs says it will only consider applications for permanent residence from January 2022.

A further problem for ZEP holders is that Home Affairs has not explained what it means by “mainstream visas” or whether permanent residence permits fall under this category.

The effect of the latest directive by Home Affairs is to prevent ZEP holders from making applications for permanent residence before December 31. “The intention by the respondents is to herd ZEP holders to apply for any visa or permit, beside permanent residence,” says the court application.

“According to the 29 November 2021 directive from [the director-general of Home Affairs], ZEP holders are expected to consider their legal options provided for by the Immigration Act and the Immigration Regulations, make a decision that impacts their future and that of their families, and then make an informed decision, all in a matter of weeks, at the risk of potential deportation if the direction they elect is wrong.

“This is indefensible. It is absurd. It is cruel. It is inhuman. It is punitive in nature. It is irrational, unreasonable, and unfair.”

Further complications

Advocate Simba Chitando, who is representing the applicants in the case, says the unreasonable time limits imposed on ZEP holders to apply for alternative visas also makes no allowance for the funds required to do this.

“Many have had their papers destroyed during several incidents of xenophobic violence, and some are working in remote areas and are completely unaware of the directive issued by Home Affairs on 29 November.”

“[The Home Affairs] decision effectively herds 180 000 human beings, together with indirectly affected relatives, arbitrarily, with a few weeks’ notice, to a legal regime that changes their lives, in the most unfriendly and inhumane manner, knowing that the decision they take, if unsuccessful, could lead to the loss of jobs, break up of families, financial ruin, and even their deportation,” says Dimairho.

The decision by Home Affairs has plunged ZEP holders into a state of anxiety as they face the very real possibility of losing their jobs, having their bank accounts closed and being deported.

The ZEP Holders Association is asking the court to set aside the November 29 directive by Home Affairs and the cabinet.

www.samigration.com

 

 

Home Affairs struggles to tackle 2-year backlog

Businesstech -13 December 2021

Permanent Residency Permit (PRP) applications for South Africa have been on hold since March 2020 when the president declared the country to be in a national state of disaster, and the arrival of the Omicron variant could push things out even further, warn immigration experts.

When the Department of Home Affairs was forced to down tools, PRP applications quickly began piling up, says Moeketsi Seboko, immigration manager at Xpatweb.

“Foreign nationals hoping to settle in the country more permanently were shocked by the delays because it prevented them from being able to open bank accounts or renew car licenses, among other things. In fear that they would not be allowed back into South Africa, they were also reluctant to leave the country.

“Business owners who were waiting for their permanent residency permit to be approved, found themselves stuck in limbo. They were obligated to continue with their trade and to provide for themselves while being unsure about what the future would hold for them.”

Before long, the department was compelled to begin processing PRPs due to a backlog of thousands of applicants, said Seboko.

In June 2021, it announced that applications would resume from 1 January 2022. However, nearly two years after the onset of the pandemic, the discovery of the mutated Omicron variant, could see the state of disaster being extended well into the new year, leaving those who dream of becoming permanent residents possibly perturbed.

“The DHA has yet to confirm whether they would continue with their plans to tackle the backlog in the new year,” he said.

Critical skills

The DHA advised that, from past information, the predominant applicant for permanent residency are dependents, like spouses or life partners.

There are, however, numerous cases where the primary applicants were migrants who have been working in South Africa for more than five years or experienced foreign nationals who qualified for a PRP based on their critical skills, said Seboko.

“This means that, with the release of the revised Critical Skills List looming, and the draft CSL having been handed over to the DHA for consideration, they consulted with various government departments, including the Departments of Health, Tourism, Public Enterprises and NEDLAC for additional input.

“Thousands of skilled foreign nationals are now hoping that their vocation will be listed as in-demand in South Africa so that they can commence a career path in the country.”

Seboko noted that the DHA is notoriously understaffed and wrestles with an archaic IT system, which makes the PRP and visa processes treacherously slow. In response to these concern, the department has assured applicants that it was working to reduce processing times.

www.samigration.com