You might have obtained your work visa recently and second-guessing whether your visa is valid or not, this is a tricky situation to be in. There are many people out there who pretend to be immigration consultants or immigration lawyers only to scam you and issue you with a fake visa. The worst is being arrested or being detained in South Africa for something that you are not responsible and the Department of Home Affairs is coming down hard on these individuals.

Many who don’t qualify for the critical skills are always looking at applying for the general work visa for South Africa and thus one of the most popular options to forge it because of how difficult it is to obtain it. While this could be true many temporary residence visas are forged throughout South Africa. How to apply for a General Work Visa in South Africa or apply for a work visa South Africa the right way.

Beware of people who guarantee you a visa, as no one in this industry can do that, not even the most experienced immigration consultant or immigration lawyer. There has been news of many immigration consultants who have promised people a visa and blackmailed immigration officials to approve these cases. Be careful of which services you make use of and always apply due diligence. The South African Department of Home Affairs will hold you accountable for any forged documents.

If you are considering applying for temporary visas then you need to ensure that you are making use of professional services. If you wondering how much does a work visa cost in South Africa. We created a blog post in detail about the cost.

To avoid getting a fake work visa, using reputable immigration agents South Africa will assist in getting a valid visa for you.

Many foreigners are working without a work visa in South Africa.

We have created a handy guide for you to read and to keep close, we would advise that you bookmark this blog post so that you can always reference it back and forth when you need the information.

Is my work visa fake?

Table of Contents

• Is my work visa fake?

o How do I know if my work visa is real?

• How do I check if my work visa is valid?

o You can use the following methods to verify:

o I would recommend keeping the following proof:

o Which visas can be obtained fraudulently?

• So when can you be arrested in SA?

• What to do if you are arrested with a fraudulent visa?

So currently there are two ways that a work visa can be forged and it’s important to understand the differences. Once you understand the different methods of fraudulent ways then you have a starting point to investigate from.

1. A work visa can be forged to look like a real visa, but this has not been printed and entered into the Department of Home Affairs system. So there is no record that it has been issued and details of your particulars.

2. Another way of obtaining a “visa” is through a corrupt Home Affairs official who you pay to illegally issue you a visa. The visa is entered onto DHA’s systems but your application has not been screened against the requirements.

How do I know if my work visa is real?

If you made use of an agency or person to get your visa and are worried if its a fraudulent visa then there are certain things you can look at with regards to the visas:

• The words used on the visa would differ from the standard wording on a legally obtained visa.

• There will be colour variations between a fraudulent and legally obtained visa.

• The fonts would be different.

• Your particulars would not be stored or listed on the Department of Home Affairs systems.

• Extremely high fees to get the visa.

Furthermore, there are more important things you can take into consideration if your visa is fraudulent:

• If the person representing you has not requested you to submit your application through VFS then this is a major red flag. All applicants in South Africa are required to submit their applications through VFS.

• You are not allowed to apply for a change of status in SA meaning that if you are on a visit visa then you cannot apply for a work visa.

• Have yourself assessed with an alternative immigration agency to find out if you qualify

If you are paying a home affairs official to get your visa, then you would be held responsible when caught and can face deportation or imprisonment.

Our advice is that it’s better to go the legal route, even though it might take longer and not as quick as you would like. The immigration agent or lawyer can tell you immediately if you qualify or what you need to do to qualify.

How do I check if my work visa is valid?

There are various ways you can check if your work visa is valid in South Africa but you have to tread carefully as the Department of Home Affairs will hold you accountable for this in which you could be banned, fined or imprisoned. Therefore it is in your best interest to check if the person assisting you has a registered business, registered for tax and VAT.

You can use the following methods to verify:

• Email the verifications department: VisaVerifications.Missions@dha.gov.za

• Call the verifications department: 012 406 – 4432

• Walk into the Department of Home Affairs to find out from an immigration officer.

When making use of a representative to apply on your behalf we recommend that you keep a trail of paperwork and any communication. This is the best way so that you have proof if ever you are arrested and detained, in this way a lawyer can represent you which you would have proof.

Before you apply make sure that you have applied your due diligence to the person representing you.

You can verify if your family visa South Africa is valid for example.

I would recommend keeping the following proof:

• Email trails

• Record all phone calls

• Keep invoices

• Record all in-person meetings

The more proof you have the better and keep these in a safe place where they are easily accessible should you need them in future.

We recommend that corporate businesses verify an applicants work visa as they can be held accountable for employing a foreign national with fraudulent papers.

Accompanying spouses in South Africa must apply for their own independent work visa as they are not allowed to work whilst on a dependent visa. There is no such thing as a accompanying spouse work visa in South Africa.

Which visas can be obtained fraudulently?

• General Work Visas

• Spouse Visas

• Life Partner Visas

• Study Visas

• Retirement Visas

• Critical Skills Visas

• Corporate Visas

• Intra-company transfer visas

• Relatives visas

• Permanent residence visas

So when can you be arrested in SA?

The South African immigration act mentions the following when you are considered to be in contravention of the act:

• In possession of a fraudulent or fake visa

• Expired visa

• Not adhering to the conditions of your visa.

• Not in possession of a visa

The experience of being arrested in SA is not a good one and therefore always ensure that you are on the right side of the law. You will never be asked to show your papers but immigration officers have the right to request to see them at any given time. Remember that if you are committing a crime in any sense, you will be imprisoned.

The best thing to do is always keep your passport and visa with you wherever you go and have a telephone or mobile number of someone you can call in SA preferably in the same town as you to help you if you are arrested. We would advise that you beforehand give the person a copy of your passport bio page, visa stamps, contact details for a family member back in your country of residence. The last thing I recommend is giving the person the details of your embassy or consulate in SA to assist you.

What to do if you are arrested with a fraudulent visa?

The South African government together with DHA are cracking down on fraudulent visas and when caught you will be locked up immediately. Our advice does not to try and fight the police or officials and don’t be abusive towards them either. You will be taken to the nearest police station and you will be kept separate.

• Call a family member to let them know you’ve been arrested.

• Ask them to hire an attorney

• Instruct your family member on how to get access to your funds should the need arise

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Rejection rates appear to be climbing

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has been given 30 days to issue a critical skills work visa to a British professional after two years of waiting and being previously ordered by the Pretoria High Court to issue the visa “forthwith”.

The same court found the Home Affairs minister and its director-general in contempt for failing to comply with a 2024 court order to issue a visa to the professional.

The court order makes it clear that the British applicant is free to enter, reside and continue work in South Africa, exit and re-enter and re-exit – even while the visa is being processed.

The court barred the DHA from arresting, detaining or declaring the applicant undesirable or sending him back to Britain while he awaits the visa.

Illogical reasons for rejection

The reasons for the rejection were illogical as the professional is a member of professional accounting bodies in SA and abroad, and this was made clear in the visa application. The court instructed Home Affairs to issue the visa within 30 days.

Benjamin van Zyl, immigration consultant and attorney at Xpatweb, which is representing the visa applicant, says while the DHA has made progress in clearing the visa backlog inherited when Leon Schreiber took over as minister, the department still battles to clear appeals flowing from the backlog inherited from the previous administration.

Immigration consultants contacted by Moneyweb say the visa backlog may have been cleared, but visa rejection rates have also increased – and that may have flattered the visa backlog numbers.

‘Significant backlog’

Stefanie deSaude Darbandi, recently appointed to the Immigration Advisory Board by Schreiber, says there was a period around December and January where there was an influx of bizarre and illogical rejections. “Since then there has been some improvement, but I would say we’re more or less back to where we were before the backlog.

“Many decisions are still being poorly made, the overall rejection rate remains far too high relative to what it should be and there’s still a significant backlog of both new applications and appeals.”

Immigration attorney Steven de Andrade says he has seen a number of visa rejections, and this is only adding to the appeals backlog.

While Home Affairs may have cleared the visa backlog, this is now showing up in a backlog of appeals.

The drive to expedite visa processing appears to have introduced new challenges, including an increase in the rejection of applications and a surge in consequent appeals, says Van Zyl.

‘No response, nothing’

These appeals seem to be receiving very little attention, adds DeSaude Darbandi.

“We’re collecting outcomes with a noticeable improvement in processing times, but then lodging appeals and then … silence. Just this morning I received an email from a client who said she was in tears. She applied two and a half years ago, her first visa was wrongfully rejected, she’s the spouse of a South African.

“She lodged her appeal about a year ago and still no reply. She said she wrote directly to the minister, received a reply some many months ago but still there’s been no movement. No response on her appeal. Nothing.

“We also still have a lot of litigious matters going into contempt [of court], followed by rushed decisions with poor outcomes, which just throws clients back into the appeal process or forces them to litigate all over again.

“I want to stay optimistic and I was, especially after the new minister took office but there’s still a long way to go.”

Another multi-year delay

Despite progress with visa processing, certain complex and historic cases remain under review, says Van Zyl.

One such matter involves a wealthy UK citizen who first applied for a “financially independent permit” to reside permanently in SA five years ago.

She demonstrated to the DHA twice that her net assets far exceed the required R12 million threshold and appealed two DHA rejections, yet was rejected twice over a period of three years.

During this period, she maintained long-term temporary residency in South Africa on a four-year ‘retired person’s visa’ while awaiting the adjudication of her permanent residence appeal.

Another rejection followed, this time of her application to renew her retired persons (RP) visa. Van Zyl notes that the rejection came as a surprise, particularly given that she had previously been granted an RP visa.

A more efficient and transparent visa system will ultimately benefit all parties concerned, but until then legal intervention is a necessary safeguard in certain instances, especially where legacy backlogs are involved, says Van Zyl.

Government’s digitisation drive is under way at Home Affairs and will be extended to applications for all documents.
• An online instant visa for visitors to SA that captures biometrics and cross-checks applications with the security features of national passports will be rolled out in September.
• The visa system will also allow immigration officials to know in real-time if a visitor overstays.
• The digital document can be downloaded and stored in the wallet of a mobile phone.

SA’s fully digital visa system will go live in September, enabling visitors to apply online and store their QR-coded visas on their mobile phones.

All applications will be done online and involve scanning a passport and other necessary documents, a declaration, uploading a selfie, and making a payment. An AI engine will verify the authenticity of the applicant’s passport using dozens of different parameters based on their country’s passport.

The AI tool also has the capability to check domestic and international security databases and will match the face on the selfie to the biometrics on the passport to verify the applicant’s identity.

Successful applicants will get their visa on the spot as a digital document with a secure QR code that can be stored in a smartphone wallet. When the traveller arrives at an airport, they will look into a camera to verify that they match the selfie and the passport biometrics provided at the time of application.

Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber says the electronic travel authorisation will revolutionise the security and efficiency of South Africa’s immigration system.

“No more fraud, no more queues, just a seamless, secure, tech-driven and world-class experience where an application can be submitted without travelling anywhere or waiting months for a paper outcome that can be manipulated,” he says.

In the past, tourists and business travellers had to apply in person at an SA consulate, embassy, or a VFS Global service point. However, not all countries have VFS offices. This posed enormous difficulties, particularly for large countries like China and India.

Schreiber says that the common Home Affairs refrain, “our systems are down, please try again later”, will not apply to visa applications as “the system will run on its own modern infrastructure to ensure it is always up, with its own dedicated portal”.

Schreiber demonstrated the system to President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has strongly backed the digitisation, earlier this week.

The first rollout phase will be complete by the end of September, before the G20 leaders’ meeting in November. It will focus on tourist visas that are valid for less than 90 days for travellers who fly into the country. The list of countries and exact policy details are still being finalised, including transitional arrangements for travellers who obtained paper visas before the new system’s launch.

Over time, the system will be expanded to become the only immigration channel into the country, fully digitalising every visa category and every port of entry — air, sea and land borders — and ensuring that no one enters our country without providing biometrics and the basic information required to better manage immigration.

Schreiber, who took office a year ago, wants to transform the Department of Home Affairs into a “digital first” department over the next five years. The digitisation project will also include:

• Online applications for ID, passport, and certificates on a secure platform linked to biometrics. Human intervention will be required only where anomalies are detected. Over time, all documents will be available in a digital format on the client’s online platform and in a digital wallet on their mobile phone.

• The integration of biometric information will be able to identify and prevent attempts at identity fraud and will detect fraudulent documents that have been reused in multiple applications.

• By integrating local and global databases with biometric information and travel information, a risk engine will notify immigration officials in real-time whenever a traveller has failed to exit the country on time. Biometric information will also enable instant verification of the status of all foreigners in the country

Border guards use off-road motorcycles in their efforts to apprehend illegal immigrants.

Improving operational efficiency or retaining personnel are probably the questions at the centre of a reportedly scheduled meeting this week between the men at the helm of two of South Africa’s three government security services.

In one corner, to use a boxing analogy, is the Border Management Authority (BMA) represented by Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber with Police Minister Senzo Mchunu in the other. The referee, to continue in pugilistic style, is Adrian Roos. As the Democratic Alliance (DA) spokesman on Home Affairs, with border control a major portfolio component for him, he told defenceWeb relevant SA Police Service (SAPS) functions have not yet been transferred to the BMA, four months short of two years since its formal launch in October 2023.

The bilateral meeting, according to him, will “iron out issues” regarding the transfer of SAPS border police functions to Commissioner Mike Masiapato’s BMA. “This is welcome but long overdue” for the “under-resourced” BMA Roos said, noting the fledgling BMA has 673 border law enforcement officers on its personnel strength. Against this, 4 354 police officers are assigned to border protection duties.

Department of Home Affairs (DHA) personnel dealing with customs, emigration and immigration, Department of Health port health functionaries, Department of Agriculture inspectors and environmental bio-security officers from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) have transferred staff, assets and budgets to BMA.

“There is yet no indication when the SAPS border police unit, responsible for implementing SAPS Act Section 13(6) functions, now in Section 5 of the BMA Act, will move,” he said adding it is a “disparity” that needs urgency.

As far as can be ascertained, BMA border guards operate in a 10 km area, not necessary radius, from official points of entry such as Beitbridge, Lebombo and Maseru Bridge among others. Against this, the SA Army border protection deployment sees 15 companies, mainly from infantry units, deployed along the country’s four thousand eight hundred plus kilometres of land border with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe.

Roos maintains since Schreiber was named as government of national unity (GNU) home affairs minister a year ago the BMA increased the number of undocumented people intercepted during the 2024 year-end period by 215% when compared to 2023. Illegal crossings over this year’s Easter break were 63% up on the same period last year proving the value of, among others unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) using artificial intelligence, body cameras and “smart monitoring equipment”.

“Technology alone cannot properly tackle illegal immigration,” he said in direct reference to the apparent unwillingness of SAPS to move personnel to the BMA.

The One-Stop Border Post Bill aims to speed up trade and travel, but critics say protection for immigrants is inadequate

Parliament recently heard submissions on the One-Stop Border Post Bill. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks

• South Africa’s One-Stop Border Post Bill proposes joint border zones where officials from neighbouring countries conduct immigration, customs and security checks together to reduce delays and facilitate trade.

• Rights groups worry that asylum seekers could be “bounced” between officials from different states or face unlawful detention because the bill doesn’t clarify which country takes responsibility in these shared zones.

• Immigrant communities and trade unions support reducing border delays, but critics say the bill lacks anti-corruption mechanisms.

• They say it fails to address underlying policies that encourage irregular crossings and smuggling.

Asylum seekers could be “bounced” between countries at the border if South Africa’s One-Stop Border Post Bill is passed in its present form, says the Scalabrini Centre.

The bill proposes joint border zones where officials from South Africa and neighbouring states would conduct immigration, customs and security checks in one place. The government says this system would reduce delays and facilitate trade, as it has done elsewhere in Africa.

But some critics say the bill, in its current form, does not sufficiently protect immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees, and prioritises efficiency at the expense of human rights.

In a submission to Parliament’s Home Affairs Portfolio Committee, the Scalabrini Centre questioned how responsibilities would be handled in shared zones. Scalabrini said asylum seekers could be “bounced” through common control zones by officials from each state, or unlawfully detained and deported.

“This is particularly concerning given the different legal frameworks in place between many of our neighbouring states with regards to refugee protection,” the organisation warned in its submission, one of eight presented to the committee.

Scalabrini also flagged the absence of anti-corruption mechanisms in the bill, and the lack of references to constitutional rights or international human rights

Professor Loren Landau, co-director of the Wits-Oxford Mobility Governance Lab at the University of the Witwatersrand, said there was much in the Bill that was “sensible”, including commitments to improve trade and limit corruption.

“What is missing, of course, is how this articulates with policy frameworks that continue to incentivise corruption, irregular crossings, and smuggling. Until these are addressed there will be little practical significance apart from some extra tendering,” she said.

Landau said more effective management within Home Affairs, more resources for the asylum system and sanctions for employers who hired people without documents “could make a real and immediate difference”.

Professor Alan Hirsch, at the Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance at the University of Cape Town, said the Department of Home Affairs needed more funds for integrating systems and recruiting skilled and honest staff. “There are some funds budgeted for these purposes in the recent budget, but not as much as Home Affairs requested,” he said.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) candidate attorney Nyeleti Baloyi told the committee that the bill would allow border officials to deny entry to, or remove, people based on the fact that they had entered through unofficial ports, even if they were asylum seekers entitled to protection under South African law.

LHR also warned against the arbitrary detention of immigrants. The organisation called for clear regulations, oversight, and compliance with international standards if any form of detention is allowed.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) said it broadly supported the bill’s trade objectives, but criticised Home Affairs for not consulting labour through NEDLAC. COSATU raised concerns that trade facilitation could be used to bypass customs duties, threatening local industries and jobs.

“We see an advantage in a One Stop Border Post in that it might create more efficiency and travellers might spend less time at the border post,” said Ngqabutho Nicholas Mabhena, chairperson of the Zimbabwe Community in South Africa. “We think it is a step in the right direction.”

Parliament’s committee is now reviewing submissions, and a revised version of the bill is expected later this year.