The Department of Home Affairs has withdrawn a controversial directive on the processing of asylum seeker applications after its implementation overwhelmed refugee reception offices, placed officials at risk and coincided with violent anti-immigrant protests in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. In a statement on Friday, 9 October 2026, the department said the directive, issued by the Director-General of Home Affairs on 28 September, had been withdrawn following serious consequences that emerged after its implementation. The decision comes after protests against the processing…

The Department of Home Affairs has warned South Africans against spreading what it describes as false information about a Constitutional Court judgment on the processing of asylum applications, amid growing anger over immigration and long queues at Home Affairs offices. The department said on Wednesday that it had identified what it believes is a coordinated disinformation campaign targeting Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber and other officials over the court’s 7 July 2026 judgment in the Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town…

Two Home Affairs officials have on Wednesday appeared in the Protea Magistrates’ Court in connection with an investigation into an alleged passport racket in which foreign nationals are believed to have paid as much as R100,000 for South African travel documents. Aluwani Andries Netshidaulu and Nthombifuthi Phyllis Mokwebo were arrested on Tuesday, 29 September, during an operation linked to Project Humulani, an investigation that has been running since 2021. They face charges of racketeering, corruption, fraud and contravening the Immigration…

Police and soldiers have arrested 121 suspected illegal miners and recovered five firearms during a major Operation Prosper/Karabo crackdown in Mphahla village, within the Fochville policing precinct on the West Rand. The operation, conducted in the early hours of Tuesday, involved various units of the South African Police Service (SAPS), the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), Department of Home Affairs immigration officers and Sibanye-Stillwater’s tactical security team. The operation began at about…

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber has welcomed the arrest of two former Department of Home Affairs officials and four members of the public in connection with an alleged fraud and corruption scheme involving the irregular registration of births at the Malamulele Home Affairs office in Limpopo. The arrests, announced on Tuesday, are the latest in the department’s ongoing campaign against corruption within the country’s identity and immigration system. According to the department, the suspects were arrested over the weekend by…

The African Transformation Movement (ATM) has called on Parliament to launch an urgent inquiry into South Africa’s rapidly expanding digital platform economy, raising concerns over the employment of undocumented foreign nationals, alleged worker exploitation and gaps in labour regulation affecting thousands of e-hailing and delivery drivers. In a letter addressed to Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour Chairperson Boyce Maneli, ATM Parliamentary Leader Vuyo Zungula urged the committee to prioritise an investigation during Parliament’s third term programme into employment conditions,…

Home Affairs Minister Dr Leon Schreiber has intensified calls for South Africans to replace their green barcoded identity books with Smart ID cards, warning that the ageing document has become a prime target for fraudsters and criminal syndicates. Speaking amid a broader government crackdown on immigration fraud and undocumented migration, Schreiber said the green ID book’s security weaknesses have allowed identity thieves to manipulate documents and commit various forms of fraud. “The green ID book is far less secure than…

The Department of Home Affairs has launched a powerful new digital verification platform aimed at helping the National Treasury crack down on ghost workers and payroll fraud across South Africa’s public sector, in what the government describes as a major step in the state’s digital transformation drive. The online real-time employee verification portal will officially go live on 15 June 2026 and will initially run for two months across national and provincial government departments. The system, developed using Home Affairs’…

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) has moved swiftly to shut down widespread claims circulating on social media and in some media reports suggesting that Lesotho nationals will soon be allowed to enter South Africa without passports, relying instead on national identity cards. On Wednesday, the department described the reports as “unfounded” and misleading, warning the public against spreading misinformation that could cause confusion at border posts and undermine immigration laws. According to Home Affairs, no agreement has been reached…

The Department of Home Affairs has deported nearly 110,000 undocumented migrants over the past two financial years, signalling a sharp escalation in immigration enforcement since the formation of South Africa’s Government of National Unity (GNU). According to figures released on Thursday, a total of 109,344 deportations were carried out between 2024 and 2026. The department says the increase reflects a strengthened commitment to restoring the rule of law and tightening control over illegal immigration. The data shows a steady upward…