Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi has extended the validity of Zimbabwean Exemption Permits (ZEP) to June 30, 2023.
He issued a directive regarding the extension of the permits on September 2.
Motsoaledi’s spokesperson, Siya Qoza, said the Departmental Advisory Committee (DAC) led by Dr Cassius Lubisi had assessed visa applications lodged by affected Zimbabwean nationals and provided a progress report to the minister.
“The report states that the DAC has met on several occasions in order to execute its mandate, and their last meeting was held for the whole day on 1 September 2022,” he said.
“The DAC recommended to the minister that in view of the progress thus far, it will be prudent for the minister to consider extending the period within which the affected Zimbabwean nationals will have an opportunity to apply for visas and/or waivers for a further six months,” he said.
The minister had carefully considered the request and granted the extension, he added.
“Another factor considered by the minister is that few Zimbabwean nationals have applied for visas and/or waivers. The minister is committed to affording the affected Zimbabwean nationals another opportunity to apply for one or other visas and/or waivers provided for in the immigration Act,” he said.
The directive will be communicated through diplomatic channels to the Zimbabwean ambassador in South Africa.
“The DHA calls upon all the affected Zimbabwean nationals to make use of this window of opportunity and not wait for the last moment to lodge their applications as is the case now,” he said.
No further extension will be granted and the department has hired an external legal firm to handle court challenges related to the matter.
This comes after the Helen Suzman Foundation filed an application in the Pretoria High Court asking for it to review and set aside Motsoaledi’s earlier decision not to extend the validity of the permits.
According to the latest directive:
• no holder of the exemption may be arrested, ordered to depart, or be detained for purposes of deportation, or deported for any reason related to him or her not having any valid exemption certificate (such as a permit label/sticker) in his or her passport. They may also not be dealt with as “illegal” or “undesirable” persons
• the holder of the exemption may be allowed to enter into or depart from the Republic of South Africa, provided that he or she complies with all other requirements for entry into and departure from the Republic, save for the reason of not having a valid permit indicated in his or her passport
• no holder of the exemption should be required to produce a valid exemption certificate or an authorisation letter to remain in the Republic when making an application for any category of the visas, including temporary residence visas.
The initial expiry date for the permits was December 31.
National Employers Association of SA CEO Gerhard Papenfus said applications should not be left to the last minute due to the granting of this extension, but should be lodged as a matter of urgency as most applications, especially waiver applications, could easily take up to six months to process.
