09 Sep How Litigation Can Help Pending Temporary and Permanent Residency Applications

Following up on outstanding and pending temporary residency and permanent residency applications in South Africa requires a great deal of highly detailed administrative work that can be hard to keep straight when you’re in the thick of it or battling ongoing delays. Our experienced and professional attorneys are well versed in the inner workings of the Department of Home Affairs and have a history of successfully obtaining our client’s required outcomes via litigation, whether it is resolving outstanding and pending temporary or permanent residency applications or even challenging a final decision made by Home Affairs.

While litigation may sound extreme, High Court attendances are often the best course of action to successfully resolve issues with an application that has remained in a pending or outstanding status for an unjustifiable length of time. Unfortunately, there is only so much a private individual can accomplish when fighting the system. Litigation forces the Department of Home Affairs to assess your case either on an urgent or non-urgent basis, which means that your attorney will ensure movement regarding your application.

How Does Litigation Work?

After an initial assessment, June Luna Immigration Attorneys will check your documents to ensure everything is in order for your case and advise on prospects of success. They will then draft an affidavit stating the facts of your case and the law. Once signed by you, it will be served to both the Minister and Director-General of Home Affairs. If there are no further problems, your litigator can settle on a court date and on that date, receive a court order to have your application finalized.

On average, an outcome is normally received within 20 days of the court order, whereby clients can make an appointment to collect at VFS. If unopposed, the entire process can take between 40-90 working days, depending on the urgency and specific details of the case. However, without litigation, it is almost impossible to estimate how long the process could naturally take and we have seen applications sit for two to four years, sometimes longer!

If you would like more information on how our litigators can assist with your pending residency application, please contact us.