A foreign national and father of two’s honesty has caused him ongoing problems and legal fees.
For four years, he worked in the country with a fraudulent work visa, but the moment he reported the fraud to Home Affairs, rather than assisting him, he faced deportation.
The man, only identified as TC in a judgment delivered shortly before Christmas, told the Western Cape High Court that he had no idea that he was issued with a fraudulent visa. Being honest, he immediately reported it to the department.
This was the start of his uphill battle in a bid to obtain his work permit in a legal manner. The department time and again refused to issue him with a work permit and the man turned to the court in October last year in a bid for the department to reconsider his application.
The department, represented by the minister, during last year’s proceedings undertook to reconsider the matter within 40 days and to report back to the applicant.
The 40 days lapsed at the end of November, yet the applicant did not hear a word from the department. He subsequently turned to the court for an urgent order holding the minister in contempt of court.
He explained that while not having a legal working permit, he was unable to provide for his family.
The applicant said the department in October undertook to take another look at his application for a work permit. This undertaking was made an order of court, yet nothing was done by the department.
In his urgent application he asked that the department had to within a week reconsider his working visa. If this order was also ignored, the applicant said, he wanted the minister to come to the court to explain why he should not be held in contempt of court.
The applicant told the court that in 2016 he obtained a work permit through a third party in South Africa. In 2020 he became aware that his purported work permit was, in fact, fraudulent and that that third party defrauded him.
He immediately approached the Department of Home Affairs in good faith to have the situation rectified. The

applicant voluntarily submitted the fraudulent visa to the department and asked for a lawful resolution of the matter.
In applying the provisions of the Immigration Act, the applicant was immediately prohibited from qualifying for a visa or admission into the republic because of him having a fraudulent permit. He was declared a prohibited person in the country.
He then applied to the department not to be declared a prohibited person, as he said these were special circumstances as he had fallen prey to fraud through no fault of his own. The director-general of the department rejected this application.
The applicant subsequently applied for the rejection to be reviewed.
The minister failed to adjudicate the applicant’s review application timeously. One year lapsed from the date of the application and up to launching the urgent application the department had remained mum on the subject.
One of the arguments forwarded on behalf of the department was that the October court order was never served on the minister. But Judge James Lekhuleni frowned upon this, as the minister, through his department, in fact agreed to that order (to reconsider the work permit).
“I find it strange and opportunistic to argue that the minister is not aware of this application. The October 2023 order was obtained by agreement with the minister. Before this application was instituted, there were several email exchanges between the officers representing the minister and the applicant’s attorneys. These officials were informed that the applicant intended to bring this application.”
The judge added that on the evidence placed before the court, there could be no doubt that the minister was in contempt of court.
He gave the minister 10 days to abide by last year`s court order. Judge Lekhuleni said if the minister did not comply, he faced the possibility of coming to court to explain why not V.5157

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) is cracking down on corruption within its ranks and finalised 31 disciplinary cases between July and September 2024, some of which resulted in criminal prosecution and dismissal.One such individual, Mogale Raseone is set to have his trial start on 6 November. He is facing charges of fraud after being dismissed from the DHA in 2023 for manipulating department systems to fraudulently administer immigration for foreign nationals V.5655
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South Africa may be its own worst enemy when dealing with foreign nationals, says an ActionSA parliamentarian.Lerato Ngobeni held a series of oversight visits last week, with a keen focus on the Department of Home Affairs.In showcasing the successes of their first 100 days in parliament, Ngobeni gave an update on her observations from the previous year. V.5654
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Cape Town comes out tops in Long Haul Holiday Report 2024Cape Town has reclaimed its position as the best-value long haul destination for British tourists, according to the 2024 Long Haul Holiday Report from Post Office.Every year, the Post Office Travel Money Long Haul Holiday Report highlights the top destinations where UK travellers can get the best value for their money.They researched 32 faraway destinations worldwide and compared the costs of common holiday items like a cup of coffee, a bottle of water, and a three-course meal for two to find out which destinations offer the best value for money. V.5652
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Eight of these cases came from the Free State, while six came from KwaZulu-Natal. Between July and September 2024, the Department of Home Affairs finalised 31 disciplinary cases against its officials.According to spokesperson Siya Qoza, the disciplinary cases resulted in a range of sanctions. These include criminal prosecution, dismissal, suspension without pay and final written warnings. The officials faced transgressions relating to irregular recruitment, violation of the Citizenship Act and the violation of the Immigration Act. Eight of these cases came from the Free State, while six came from KwaZulu-Natal. Home Affairs officials nabbedOne of the includes that of an official who failed to abide by the required standards of ethical conduct. His trial is set to start on 6 November, facing fraud charges. The official was dismissed from the department last year after the conclusion of disciplinary processes. V.5653
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The Citizen tried Home Affairs services on wheels and found it to be disorganised. Residents have been using the mobile services provided by the Home Affairs trucks. Temperatures were soaring, with no chairs in sight and a long line ahead. This was the experience of a reporter when they lined up to try Home Affairs mobile services. The outreach programme sends trucks to areas to help make the department’s services more accessible to residents who find it difficult to reach their offices. V.5648
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The BMA has confirmed the new switch-over system, installed to expedite data capture and to prevent future disruptions.The glitches that recently interrupted the flow of international flights at the King Shaka International Airport (KSIA) in KwaZulu-Natal have been sorted out, according to Mmemme Mogotsi, the deputy assistant commissioner for communications and marketing at the Border Management Authority (BMA). V.5649
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The Groblersbrug bridge across the Limpopo River is too narrow, many say, to handle the high volumes of traffic into Botswana. Source: SA Truckerorder transporters are waiting up to three days to pass through South Africas Groblersbrug border into Botswana because of a double whammy ` a new biometrics system implemented by the Border Management Authority (BMA), and ongoing barriers to entry at Beitbridge.Mike Fitzmaurice of the Transit Assistance Bureau explained that the BMA had implemented a new system whereby the biometrics of everyone, travellers and truck drivers alike, were recorded by immigration officials. Although it only takes about 15 minutes, the problem at Groblersbrug is there are only four immigration officers on duty during each shift.Compounding matters are existing impediments at Beitbridge forcing long-distance hauliers serving mines in the Copperbelt to drive around Zimbabwe.Unfortunately, Groblersbrug cant cope with the volume of traffic. V.5650
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The South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg has granted an unemployed woman permission to relocate to Australia with her children where she got a job. An unemployed woman has been granted permission to relocate to Australia with her two children, where she has secured a job, following her ex-husband`s refusal to allow them to leave the country. She sought relief from the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg after her ex-husband declined to sign the consent forms needed for her to apply for visas for herself and their children. V.5651
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Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber has gazetted far-reaching reforms for South Africa’s visa regime.The gazetting of the Remote Work Visitor Visa and the new Points-Based System for Work Visas on 9 October is said to remove bureaucratic hurdles which have hampered South Africa’s visa regime.Schreiber said that the “fit-for-purpose and market-friendly reforms would reposition South Africa as a world-class destination for investment and tourism to create thousands of new jobs. V.5642
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Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber has gazetted far-reaching reforms for South Africa’s visa regime.The gazetting of the Remote Work Visitor Visa and the new Points-Based System for Work Visas on 9 October is said to remove bureaucratic hurdles which have hampered South Africa’s visa regime.Schreiber said that the “fit-for-purpose and market-friendly reforms would reposition South Africa as a world-class destination for investment and tourism to create thousands of new jobs. V.5643
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