Visa applicants in South Africa with pending waivers and appeals may be forced to leave the country by the end of March 2026 as the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) is set to let a critical visa concession expire.
- South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs (DHA) will let a critical visa concession for pending waivers and appeals expire at the end of March 2026.
- If the concession is not extended, affected applicants may have to resort to litigation or depart South Africa to avoid overstaying and undesirable status.
- The concession allowed foreign nationals to legally remain while awaiting visa decisions, but ongoing delays mean many now risk being forced to leave the country.
- Authorities are working to digitize immigration processes to reduce fraud, but the coming expiration may leave many foreign nationals in uncertain legal standing.
The concession, extended several times since 2022, has allowed foreign nationals to maintain lawful status while awaiting the Department of Home Affairs’ (DHA) decision on their visa applications.
However, there is no indication that further extensions will be granted.
As reported by Business Tech, the concession was designed to prevent foreign nationals from falling into an undesirable immigration status due to extended processing times.
With the expiration of the concession approaching, individuals with pending waivers or appeals will be required to leave South Africa, potentially facing an undesirable status declaration upon departure.
Impact of Concession Expiry
Should the concession not be extended, foreign nationals awaiting decisions from the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) will lose their protection, leaving them with limited options.
According to BT, Immigration attorneys from Visa Litigation Services (VLS) have pointed out that individuals may need to either escalate their cases through litigation or depart South Africa to avoid overstaying their visas.
“Some have been in South Africa for decades, are married to South African citizens or permanent residents, and have been waiting on DHA’s adjudication outcome since 2022. This is not their fault, and it is unacceptable,” VLS said.
The financial burden of last-minute departures is further amplified by rising air travel costs, which have surged due to geopolitical tensions and rising oil prices driven by conflicts in the Middle East.
This situation has placed additional stress on applicants already impacted by DHA’s delays.
DHA’s Progress and Corruption Allegations
The DHA has been addressing a backlog of over 300,000 applications since early 2024.
While much of this backlog has been cleared, the department continues to face delays in processing visa waivers and appeals.
To mitigate these delays, the DHA extended the concession until March 31, 2026, due to the ongoing rise in waiver and visa appeal applications.
Corruption in South Africa’s Immigration System Uncovered by SIU Investigation
This comes after a recent report by the State’s Special Investigating Unit (SIU), which found that South Africa’s immigration system had been exploited for years by a small group of officials.
These officials enriched themselves by taking payments in exchange for issuing visas and residence permits.
The investigation, ordered by President Cyril Ramaphosa, examined corruption related to visa issuance between 2004 and 2024, prior to the current coalition government’s tenure.
The findings pointed to manipulated immigration processes within a largely paper-based system, which had been criticised for being slow and prone to abuse.
Impact on South African Employment
The corruption has not only undermined the integrity of the immigration system but has also impacted local employment.
The manipulation of visa applications and permits has led to an influx of foreign nationals in the country, with many of them obtaining permits through corrupt means, ultimately competing for jobs with South African citizens.
Digital Reform to Combat Corruption
In response to the findings, Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber acknowledged that the department is working to combat fraud through digitisation.
Authorities are migrating to an electronic travel authorisation platform aimed at reducing human discretion in processing applications.
“It is only through the systemic reform anchored in digital transformation and the use of modern technology that we can definitively close the space for corruption,” Schreiber said.
Uncertainty Surrounds Concession Extension as Deadline Approaches
As the expiration date of the concession approaches, the DHA has not provided any indication of whether an extension will be granted.
With the backlog largely cleared, the focus now shifts to how the department will handle future visa and waiver applications, particularly those still in limbo.
The outcome of this situation will significantly affect foreign nationals’ ability to maintain their legal status in South Africa, and those affected are advised to remain attentive to any announcements from the DHA as the deadline nears.
