Travellers to South Africa and the country's tourism industry were rattled when an internal Department of Home Affairs memo was shared with the media, sparking concern among"Swallows" - seasonal visitors who travel between hemispheres for sunny weather. The circular, intended for border officials, explains visa application and renewal procedures. However, its inadvertent leak and unclear language sparked fears that the government was making it harder for tourists to stay.
"The word 'undesirable' is perhaps by itself unfortunate because it sounds scary, but it is the term used when the Immigration Act of 2002 was enacted in Parliament," he said. "In case your visa expires before the department has responded to your application, that receipt will act as an extension of your visa until you get a negative or positive response," he said."If there is anybody who was declared undesirable whilst they were carrying their receipt, they need to present themselves to the department so that their undesirability status can be removed.
Motsoaledi said that, according to records, Mpofu's permit is fraudulent, was not issued by the Department of Home Affairs, and the department did not know how he obtained it.There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.