Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi has turned to the Constitutional Court in his bid to appeal against a Pretoria High Court judgment that found the process he used to end the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit programme was neither fair nor lawful.
The high court ruled against the minister and he failed in his appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi is continuing with his court battles to scrap the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) programme.
In June 2023, the Pretoria high court ruled that the termination of the ZEP had been unlawful and unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court of Appeal then dismissed his appeal on the grounds that it had no prospects of success, but now the Minister has turned to the Constitutional Court, essentially on the same grounds, asking that it adjudicate over the issue.
In the application lodged in the apex court, Home Affairs director-general Livhuwani Tommy Makhode, who is the second applicant after the minister, wants leave to appeal against the whole June 2023 judgment of the Pretoria high court, which ordered the minister to reconsider the termination of the programme and follow a fair, lawful and consultative process.
The Pretoria high court then refused to grant leave to appeal.
Makhode submits the court erred by disregarding his affidavit as “impermissible hearsay” because it was not deposed to by the minister. Yet the court had not made such a finding in its main judgment.
“The ineluctable conclusion is that, although it did not expressly say so in the main judgment, it had disregarded the affidavit,” he said.
Makhode further contends that other grounds not considered by the Pretoria court, which had been “squarely raised”, were the separation of powers doctrine.
The court had got the notion of public participation wrong.
He said the Pretoria court had incorrectly agreed with the Helen Suzman Foundation that the minister ought to have consulted before the decision to terminate the programme was taken.
“Even if audi [hearing the other side] was a

mandatory requirement, in this instance I am advised and submit that the full court erred and ought to have found that the representations considered after the decision were sufficient to render it both procedurally fair and lawful.
“The fact remains that the ZEP holders were all allowed to be heard, albeit after the decision was taken.”
Regarding the finding by the court that the minister had failed to consider the impact of the decision on the rights of ZEP holders and their children, Makhode said this was an error and would mean that the status of the permit holders could never be revoked or withdrawn in terms of the Immigration Act.
“The director-general states under oath that such rights were considered. Rights of children cannot (due to the nature of the decision) trump all other fundamental rights.”
He said the court should have found that the minister had discharged the onus to justify the limitation of ZEP holders’ rights. The minister had pleaded that conditions in Zimbabwe had improved to the extent that they could now return home.
Makhode submitted the issue was still a “live controversy” and the department was currently constrained from taking any action against those ZEP holders whose applications for renewal or extension have been unsuccessful.
“To date approximately 78,126 [of a total of 178,000 ZEP holders] have already applied for waivers and 10,427 have applied for other visas. The validity of their exemption permits has been duly extended; however, if their applications are unsuccessful, the order of the high court prevents the minister from exercising powers conferred upon him by the Act.”
He said given the complexity, and constitutional matters raised by the appeal, and the public interest, leave to appeal should be granted.
The Helen Suzman Foundation and others are expected to oppose the application. They have until March 15 to file papers. V.5226

Australia’s plan to cap the number of new international students to 270,000 starting in 2025 has sparked widespread concern within the education sector. However, the proposal, which still needs parliamentary approval, is unlikely to have a significant impact on students from African countries planning to study in Australia. The National Planning Level (NPL) for 2025, which includes the limit on the number of international student enrolments, aims to reduce overall migration to pre-pandemic levels. V.5595
Click here for full article

Bethuel Ngobeni, Dumisa Moyo, Nhlanhla Magwaca, Moseki Sechele, Thabo Sechele and Khudzai Mashaya appear in court to face illicit gold mining charges. Image: Thapelo Morebudi An investigation into illicit gold mining has uncovered how one of the accused obtained a fraudulent identity document, 12 years after arriving in SA. V.5594
Click here for full article

• Lesotho has rekindled moves to implement localisation rules for certain types of businesses dominated by foreigners. • Indians, Chinese and South Africans dominate the 47 reserved businesses. • SA firms will be under pressure to use local distributors, and not contract Basotho labour via SA-based agents. V.5587
Click here for full article

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said that plans were underway for the Department of Home Affairs to switch from working manually to digitally. CAPE TOWN - Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said that long queues, off-line systems, and paper-based applications at department offices would soon be a thing of the past. Schreiber said that plans were underway for the Department of Home Affairs to switch from working manually to digitally. V.5588
Click here for full article

‘There are various pathways and provisions in the law that recognise that people should not be stateless, and we are failing to ensure that these people have papers,’ says Global Movement Against Statelessness’ Christy Chitengu. Christy Chitengu was born in South Africa and regards herself as a South African, despite her parents being Zimbabwean. V.5589
Click here for full article

Inspection at workplaces set to increase Newly appointed home affairs minister Leon Schreiber will increase inspections at restaurants, spaza shops, farms and mines to heighten the crackdown on undocumented workers in these industries. Schreiber said while SA welcomes those who contribute to the country legally through skills, investments and as tourists, it needed to do more to combat illegal immigration. V.5592
Click here for full article

CAPE TOWN - Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber says since March, his department already reported 109 cases of document fraud to its counter corruption unit. Three officials have been convicted and sentenced during this same period. V.5593
Click here for full article

Key Takeaways • As of August 28, Canada has banned temporary residents on visitor visas from applying for work permits within the country. • The policy`s early termination is part of IRCC`s efforts to manage the influx of temporary residents and combat immigration fraud. • Starting September 26, 2024, Canada will cut the number of temporary foreign workers by about 65,000. Canada has recently launched a new policy that prohibits temporary residents on visitor visas from applying for work permits within the country, a decision that significantly impacts their ability to work and stay in Canada. V.5583
Click here for full article

The United Kingdom has long been a favoured destination for South Africans seeking work or residency, thanks to shared language, time zones, and historical ties. However, according to JP Breytenbach from Breytenbachs Immigration Consultants, the profile of South African migrants is changing. “There is a significant increase in business migration, with companies aiming to expand into the UK as a gateway to Europe or the US,” he shared in an interview with Biznews. Many of these South Africans businesses feel they have reached a ceiling in their local markets or are tech entrepreneurs who believe their products are not yet viable in South Africa. This year, new UK immigration rules are set to take effect as the country seeks to limit net migration. V.5584
Click here for full article

Applicants who prefer hard copies of ZEP waiver letters will still be able to collect them at branches. Leon Schreiber, Minister of Home Affairs, during the swearing-in ceremony of the new national executive members at Cape Town International Convention Centre on 3 July, 2024 in Cape Town. Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber has announced that the first batch of Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) waiver applications has been processed. ZEP holders will no longer need to go to Home Affairs branches to find out the outcome of their applications. The department will be sending them out digitally. V.5585
Click here for full article