Aug-Sept 2014 K.indd

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AUG/SEPT 2014 • www.cosatu.org.za

IMMIGRATION Regulations

ECONOMY

T he Department of Home Affairs amended Immigrations Regulations came into force the 22nd of May 2014. These regulations are meant to implement the Immigration Act which was amended in 2008. The Amendment Bill was tabled and discussed in NEDLAC in 2007; but the Department of Home Affairs refused to subject them for engagement through a task team due to “time constraints”. The amended regulations re fl ect an increased sensitivity to security concerns within government. Whilst many aspects, however unpleasant they

amount of R1350 is now also payable to the private visa company.

may be, are in line with international the post 9/11 security trends; e.g. visa applications that must be done in person with biometric data recorded; there are also several fundamental omissions and fl aws that make it dif fi cult for COSATU to support the regulations in their current composition. Visa applications completed within South Africa as well as those submitted in approximately 8 other countries, are now to be submitted to a private company, VFS Global. In addition to various fees charged for different visa applications, a separate fee for the

Whilst this is an increasing international trend by many countries, including Great Britain and Australia, it is also a clear partial privatisation of visa application services by the Department of Home Affairs. The visa company merely ensures that the applications contain the relevant documentation and then forward them to the Department for processing. They also provide a buffer between the application and the Department. For this, applications must pay a hefty fee of R1350 to this private