Three recent developments clarify important rights and responsibilities within South Africa’s immigration and civic-services system.
Birth registration cannot be refused solely because a parent is undocumented
In Cirangashane and Others v Director-General of Home Affairs, the Western Cape High Court held that Home Affairs may not refuse to receive or determine a birth-registration application merely because one or both parents lack valid passports, visas or permits.
The judgment also addresses children requiring late registration and adults whose births were never registered because they were abandoned or orphaned.
Home Affairs may still investigate the application and require credible evidence of the birth.
A birth certificate records a person’s birth. It does not automatically confer South African citizenship, which is determined through a separate legal framework.
Procedural non-compliance cannot block an asylum claim before its merits are considered
In Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town and Another v Minister of Home Affairs and Others, the Constitutional Court confirmed that immigration-related procedural failures cannot automatically exclude an applicant from the asylum system before the substance of the protection claim is assessed.
This provides access to fair adjudication. It does not automatically recognise the person as a refugee or guarantee a successful claim.
Some pending applicants receive temporary protection
Immigration Directive No. 7 of 2026 gives qualifying, lawfully admitted applicants with specified pending waiver, long-term visa or appeal matters a temporary concession until 30 June 2027.
Applicants must have submitted through VFS Global and hold a verifiable receipt. They remain bound by their existing visa conditions.
Nationals of non-visa-exempt countries require a port-of-entry visa before returning to South Africa. Pending permanent-residence applicants are excluded and must maintain independent temporary status.
The concession ends immediately when an outcome is issued.
How Besther can assist
Besther Consulting Group assists with immigration document assessments, birth-registration administration, VFS pending-status reviews, translations and employer immigration compliance.