Stricter rules for the acquisition of South African citizenship have been proposed in a draft revised White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection.
The draft was published on Friday in the Government Gazette by home affairs minister Leon Schreiber for public comment. It revises the White Paper, which was approved in April 2024.
A new merit-based approach to the granting of citizenship is proposed as opposed to basing qualification solely on the number of years a foreigner has lived in South Africa. A points-based system will be applied for economic pathways to citizenship.
“This new system will operate in parallel to the existing principle that a child with at least one parent who is a South African citizen at the time of birth automatically becomes a citizen, while a child born to non-South African parents [will] have to apply for naturalisation,” home affairs minister Leon Schreiber said in a statement.
An annual window period for the submission of citizenship applications will be introduced to prevent backlogs, and a Citizenship Advisory Panel will consider them.
Fundamental reform
The priorities of the government of national unity (GNU), the visa review undertaken through Operation Vulindlela, and the department of home affairs’ digital transformation agenda had all been incorporated into the revised version of the White Paper, he said.
“The draft revised White Paper outlines a vision for the most fundamental reform to South Africa’s citizenship, immigration and refugee protection frameworks in a generation. It is designed to clamp down on fraud and abuse, enhance national security, improve service delivery, and promote economic development,” Schreiber said.
Minimum investment
The document says there is a need to review the current visas under the Immigration Act. Visas such as the relatives visa, corporate visa and intra-company visa will be abolished. Additional limited-duration permanent residence visas linked to minimum investment should be introduced as well as tourist e-visas and remote work visas.
“The introduction of a limited-duration permanent residence visa with minimum investment will add impetus to the economic stimulus,” the document says.
Reforms to the immigration system include the introduction of new visa categories for remote work, start-ups, skilled workers (which combines the existing critical skills and general work visas into one category), sports and culture, and the replacement of corporate visas with sectoral work visas for specific industries.
It also introduces a new, merit-based points-based system for certain visas and permanent residency and supports the rollout of the electronic travel authorisation (ETA) to record biometrics for every foreigner in South Africa.
Refugees
With regard to refugees, the “First Safe Country Principle” is refined. This principle states that asylum seekers who have been granted refugee status or lawful protection in another country, or who pass through safe third countries to reach South Africa, are ineligible for asylum in South Africa.
“This is designed to combat the phenomenon of applicants ‘picking and choosing’ South Africa as their preferred destination to claim asylum while passing through other safe countries on the way,” Schreiber explained.
The reform will require the minister of home affairs to designate, on an annual basis, safe third countries that have ratified the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and to withdraw such designation as and when the need arises.
It will also mandate the government to enter into bilateral agreements with safe third countries, so that the burden of migration in sub-Saharan Africa is shared more equitably.
In terms of the proposals, South Africa will have the right to repatriate refugees to their countries of origin when the political situation has improved and the fear of persecution no longer exists.
“A disturbing trend has emerged in South Africa in which asylum is regarded as a permanent solution and an easy path to acquire residence status and later citizenship,” the draft white paper says.
“The criteria for granting citizenship in SA must be tightened,” it says.
Written submissions on the draft revised White Paper can be made until January 31. Consultations will also be held.
A national stakeholder consultation session will also be convened to engage government departments, Chapter 9 institutions, business, labour, academia, civil society and multilateral organisations.(BusinessDay SA)
