South Africa: White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection Published for Comment

January 9, 2024

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Country / Territory

At a Glance

  • Update January 9, 2024: The Department of Home Affairs extended the deadline for public comments on the “White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection” to January 31, 2024, up from the original deadline of January 19, 2024. 
  • The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has published a ‘White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection’ to establish a process for foreign nationals to obtain residency and citizenship in South Africa, as well as to safeguard refugees and asylum seekers. This framework will ensure adherence to international migration agreements and protocols to which South Africa is a signatory.
  • The White Paper proposes South Africa temporarily withdraw from two international agreements on refugee protection namely, the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention and the 1967 UN Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, as South Africa does not have the resources to grant the socioeconomic rights to refugees envisaged in the 1951 Convention.
  • Individuals interested in submitting comments must do so by January 19, 2024.

The situation

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has published the White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection, which seeks to establish a process for foreign nationals to obtain residency and citizenship in South Africa, as well as safeguard refugees and asylum seekers for public comment.  The deadline for providing comments is January 19, 2024.

  • Submission of comments. Interested individuals can submit responses directly to the Chief Director: Strategy and Institutional Performance in Pretoria or via mail or email. Fragomen can assist with the submission drafting and process.
  • Proposed changes. The White Paper proposes the following changes to be included in the proposed legislation:

 

AREA 

PROPOSED CHANGE

IMPACT

Refugees
  • The inclusion of the Refugees Act in the envisaged legislation dealing with citizenship, immigration, and refugee protection.
  • Integration of internationally recognized best practices pertaining to refugees into the proposed legislation.
  • Employment of qualified personnel in DHA who can manage the proper refugee protection processes.
  • Placement of refugee officers at ports of entry for immediate assessment of claims.
  • Establishment of appeal bodies staffed with personnel who are suitably qualified and presided over by a judge or a senior counsel.

 
  • Improved refugee system with benchmarked practices will offer more efficient services.
  • Faster decisions on  refugees’ applications.

Citizenship

Stricter rules regarding granting citizenship in South Africa.

 

Citizenship will be reserved for individuals who contribute to the country’s global competitiveness.

 

Immigration entities
  • Establishment of an interdepartmental Immigration Board aimed at managing immigration challenges in South Africa.
  • The Anti-Corruption Unit to be seconded from the South African Police Service.
  • Review of the Border Management Authority Act to ensure alignment with the proposals in the White Paper.
  • Mandatory training for all immigration officers to strengthen their skills and expertise in immigration enforcement.
  • Establishment of Immigration courts to handle reviews from the DHA Director-General, Minister, and other established bodies intended to ensure immigration matters are dealt with in a specialized court with immigration expertise (currently any court in the country can deal with immigration matters).
  • Replacement of the existing Standing Committee of Refugee Affairs, with an Immigration and Refugee Board to assess applications submitted by asylum seekers. The Board would have more personnel and would consist of three divisions: the Immigration Division, the Refugee Protection Division, and the Immigration Appeal Division.

 

Increased cooperation of government agencies in managing immigration services will result in service improvements.

Various entities, including civil society, government departments, organized labor, individuals, and other stakeholders, including Fragomen, have the opportunity to provide comments to the paper to ensure that a comprehensive public consultation process is undertaken and integrated before the enactment of the law.

The White Paper recommendations seek to impose more uniform immigration-related legislation and stricter enforcement practices. Currently, these laws lack consistency and are not consolidated. If the proposed changes are adopted, citizenship, immigration, and refugee law would be consolidated under a single legislative framework.

After the review of the public comments, it is anticipated that the DHA would submit the bill in Parliament in 2024. Fragomen will report on relevant developments.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].

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