02 Jun Level 3 Lockdown and what it means for immigrants in South Africa

Level 3 lockdown in South Africa has not brought any respite for foreigners in South Africa or those who are abroad and wish to re-enter. At the moment, only South African citizens and permanent residents are entitled to come to South Africa. All visa processes, including submission of applications or collection of applications is suspended until further notice.

Mapisa-Nqakula said “the services offered by the Home Affairs Department will include birth registration, re-issue of birth certificates, late registration of birth (by appointment), marriage services, death certificates, temporary IDs and the collection of IDs applied for prior to the lockdown.”. The video can be watched here.

All foreigners in South Africa who have a visa that has expired since the lockdown will have an automatic extension until the 31st of July 2020. This will allow foreigners to leave South Africa on repatriation flights without being declared undesirable, or renew visas once the visa facilitation center (VFS) is open, without additional paperwork which is normally needed.