Tag: Department of Home Affairs (DHA)

Almost three months after South Africa introduced the long-awaited Remote Work Visa to attract foreign digital nomads who can choose any exotic destination in the world to work from, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) sees an uptick in enquiries from these remote workers who want to move to South Africa, and specifically to Cape Town.

The Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) has recently stepped up its inspection raids. These actions have attracted significant media attention. Most notably, these inspections have been prominent in the hospitality industry. As a result of these inspections, approximately 80 people working in restaurants across the country have been arrested.

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has launched the re-packaging of the Corporate Accounts service with a Pilot Project for Trusted Employers. The Trusted Employer Scheme (TES) aims to provide qualifying companies a means to a flexible pathway for skilled applicants to obtain work visas expeditiously in line with global best practice.

Navigating the various work visa applications is quite tricky. Individuals and HR professionals assisting employees in applying for their work visas often face lengthy qualifying criteria and a complex application process that can be difficult to get right the first time around. 

On 28 June 2023, the High Court handed down a landmark judgment where the decision by the Minister of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) not to extend the longstanding Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) after 31 December 2021 was found to be invalid, unlawful, and unconstitutional.

The now well-known Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) has a longstanding history since it was initially implemented by the Republic of South Africa as the Dispensation of Zimbabweans Project (DZP) in 2009. The objectives of the DZP were to provide Zimbabwean nationals who were in possession of fraudulently obtained immigration documents with amnesty, and to curb their deportation.

Expatriate taxpayers awaiting approval of their non-resident status may be surprised to discover that South African Revenue Service (SARS) can track their flights into and out of South Africa. This is evident from the attached Request for Additional Supporting Documents letter, received by one of our clients.

On 29 November 2021, a directive was issued by the Director-General of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) confirming cabinet's decision that, no further extensions would be granted to Zimbabwean nationals, who were holders of a Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP).

On 18 August 2022, we published an opinion piece regarding the decision of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to no longer extend the Zimbabwean Exemption Permits (ZEPs), which are set to expire on 31 December 2022.

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has recently introduced a centralised adjudication system which sees that all long-term visa applications submitted through a South African Embassy or High Commission (Missions) (in countries where South Africa is represented) are being sent to the DHA Head Office in Pretoria.