Home Affairs Confirms New Passport Measures are on Track

Department of Home Affairs (DHA) Director General Mkuseli Apleni said in a statement yesterday that the DHA is on track with the implementation of those Cabinet concessions on immigration rules which were announced in October 2015. These include an extension of the expiry date of the Parental Consent Affidavit, and the future roll-out of South African passports which will include parental details and negate the need for the Unabridged Birth Certificate (UBC) for local children.

As far as foreign minors, from visa-exempt countries, needing to carry a UBC Apleni said it is still “strongly advised”, although the DHA has not yet finalised the implementation of the Travel Advisory to ensure compliance with UBC-related directives, although it is “working with the NDT (National Department of Tourism), to ensure the regulations are amended accordingly”.

It has been reported that Apleni confirmed in a press briefing that airline staff will no longer need to check that foreign passengers are carrying a UBC for each child accompanying them.

Contrary to some inaccurate reports, the UBC relaxation does not apply to South African minors who still must travel in and out of South Africa with their UBC until such time as the new South African passports are rolled out, which could begin within the next three months. Those with the new passports, showing both parents’ details (similar to passports from India), will no longer need a UBC as well.

The new measures – as recommended by the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Immigration – are hoped to facilitate an easier flow of travellers in and out of South Africa, whilst still protecting the interests and safety of SA citizens…and ultimately prevent the predicted loss of jobs and millions of tourism rands.

Tourism and investment industries had raised concerns about a drop in travellers to SA after the stringent amendments to the immigration laws resulted in several families being turned away, and others selecting less complicated destinations (as most countries, for instance, do not require a child’s UBC).

David Frost, Chief Executive Officer of the Southern Africa Tourism Services Association (SATSA), said on Friday: “I want to commend the Department of Home Affairs for the work done. This is an incredible process.”

He said these new development will end the differences that existed between the sector and the Department of Home Affairs, and “hopefully brings to an end what has been… an arduous 18 months.”

Apleni said all the recommended changes for the first phase (1 November 2015 to 31 January 2016), have been completed.

Speaking in Pretoria yesterday, he said: “The general consensus is that we are indeed on course, with notable progress being made.”

The statement outlined the following progress:

1. Capturing biometrics at ports of entry
   Biometrics are now being captured at ports of entry including OR Tambo (8 counters), King Shaka (5 counters), Lanseria (5 counters) and Cape Town (8 counters) airports. Training is ongoing as additional counters/ports are enabled for biometric capturing.
2. Introduction of an Accredited Tourism Company Programme for countries like China, India and Russia
   The National Department of Tourism (NDT) was appointed. They have confirmed that China has a highly regulated tourism sector and therefore on 29 January 2016, Minister Gigaba waived the requirement to apply for a port of entry visa in-person for Chinese travellers who are travelling as part of a tour group. Accredited Chinese tour operators will apply on behalf of such travellers, on condition that the biometric data of the travellers will be taken on arrival in and on departure from South Africa.
   The NDT is undertaking research in relation to the accreditation of service providers in India and Russia.
3. Introduction of long-term Multiple Entry Visa
   A long-term Multiple Entry Visa for a period exceeding 3 months and up to 3 years for frequent travellers (for business meetings), business people and academics has been implemented; and on 29 January 2016, the Minister of Home Affairs approved the granting of 10-year multiple entry visas to business and academics from Africa.
4. Letters for travel to be issued by school principals, in respect of SA children
   The DHA has developed a template for school principals to confirm permission for South African children to travel on school tours, in lieu of individual parent consent forms. The Department has also taken steps to facilitate the travel of South African sports teams abroad with regards to 75 accredited sports federations.
5. Extension of validity of parental consent affidavit to 6 months
   The Parental Consent Affidavit has been extended from four to six months.

The Director General also said that thanks to the successful implementation of biometric capturing at key ports of entry, Transit Visas are no longer required when transiting through Lanseria, King Shaka, Cape Town International and OR Tambo airports.

He said the DHA will now focus on giving effect to the measures falling in the next phase (3 months to 1 year), which are to:

1. Add visa facilitation centres, including in Zimbabwe, United Arab Emirates and Botswana,
2. Consider a visa-waiver for India, China, Russia and other countries,
3. Look at issuing visas on arrival for persons travelling to SA who already have valid visas in their passports for the UK, USA and Canada or any other country that applies stringent checks on visitors to their countries, to ease travel for tourists,
4. Consider granting a certain category of frequent travellers (business and academics) from Africa a 10 year Multiple Entry Visitor’s Visa [This has already been achieved]
5. Open two Business Visa Facilitation Centres in Durban and Port Elizabeth, in addition to the centre recently opened in Sandton,
6. Print parents’ details in new passports so that they do not have to carry birth certificates.

Shadow Minister of Tourism James Vos, from the Democratic Alliance (DA), responded to the DHA’s announcements saying the amendments to their “job-killing visa regulations” would “not go far enough to restore South Africa as a tourist friendly destination”.

Vos said the DHA should rather implement an E-visa system in line with the recommendations by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and that no longer requiring a UBC for those with passports detailing both parents was of “no benefit to those who do not possess these updated passports.”

He said Friday’s announcement was “too little, too late” and “countless jobs have already been lost”, quoting the fact that one job is created for every 12 tourists that visit South Africa.

Sources: DHA, DA and SANews.gov.za