Passport news: Big changes coming to passports and visas in SA

There are a few big changes that will be carried for passports and visas in South Africa, says Minister of Home Affairs, Aaron Motsoaledi.

Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi announced some big changes to the South African passport applications and collections.

FLEXIBILITY FOR APPLICATIONS AND COLLECTIONS OF PASSPORTS HAVE BEEN REMOVED

According to Motsoaledi, the ‘flexibility’ given to these applications and collections is being removed. This will be done to protect the passport’s integrity.

The news follows issues regarding fraud and corruption that involved passports. The high-profile cases have, unfortunately, damaged South Africa’s reputation and brought the country’s passport into question.

Motsoaledi brought up cases involving illegal immigrants and department officials. He also spoke about the RyanAir matter in the UK.

“South Africa’s passport has been in the news for all the wrong reasons.

“It is for this reason that the Department of Home Affairs has to do something – because this state of affairs cannot be allowed to continue unabated,”

said Motsoaledi.

THE DEPARTMENT IS WITHDRAWING TRANSIT VISA EXEMPTIONS FOR CERTAIN COUNTRIES

Due to the cases in which Bangladeshi and Pakistani nationals have attempted to illegally pass through South African airports, the Department said it will be withdrawing transit visa exemptions for these two countries from 1 August 2022.

People travelling from Bangladesh or Pakistan will now be required to apply for a visa when transiting through SA.

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WHAT CHANGES ARE BEING MADE WITHIN SOUTH AFRICA?

There are three major actions being taken by the Department to protect the security of SA’s passport. Motsoaledi announced the first one which involves the end of transferable and third-party collections as well as a new activation process that only applications can complete.

Currently, passport applications allow for the document to be picked up at ANY office in SA if the applicant requests a transfer. It also currently allows for third-party collection.

This will no longer be allowed. Business Tech reports that the following will be in effect:

• A passport can only be collected from the office it was applied for. You will be forced to go back to the same office to collect it;
• Only the person who applied for the passport can collect it;
• Passports will be activated by a fingerprint – which will be compared to a photo;
• Upon collection, everything has to be matched up to the data in the national identity database and;
• For minors, only parents or legal guardians can apply and collect these, using the same methods.

In terms of the other two changes, Motsoaledi said these would be discussed in due course. He noted that one of these measures would be an ‘internal process’ that will not be discussed in order to prevent fraudsters from using it for their advantage.

“We know this will inconvenience some frequent travellers and those pressed for time, but everyone needs to be prepared to make sacrifices to protect the integrity of the passport,”

he said.

‘EMERGENCY PASSPORTS’ IN SA

The minister stressed that South Africa does not have an ‘emergency passport’. The items often described as emergency passports are hand-written documents that are only available to South African citizens who are stranded abroad.

In terms of fast-tracking your passport, Motsoaledi said this is a very expensive process and happens under very rare circumstances.

The typical turnaround for passports in SA is between 5-13 days. Minister Motsoaledi also urged locals to use the online booking systems and the partnerships his Department has with banks.

By: Reeshni Chaslyn Chetty