ZEP
holders
say
it
will
be
impossible
to
meet
the
deadline
while
application
backlogs
at
Home
Affairs
persist.
Without
a
one-year
exemption,
visa
or
waiver,
many
of
those
who
have
been
living
and
paying
tax
in
SA
for
more
than
15
years
are
at
risk
of
deportation.
Image:
AdobeStock
Zimbabwe
Exemption
Permit
(ZEP)
holders
say
it
will
be
impossible
for
them
to
meet
the
Friday
deadline
to
apply
for
a
further
one-year
exemption
because
of
backlogs
at
the
Department
of
Home
Affairs
(DHA).
ZEP
holders
have
until
Friday
(29
November)
to
apply
for
a
one-year
exemption
that
would
allow
them
to
stay
and
work
in
SA
until
November
2025.
After
this
date,
those
without
the
required
visa
or
waiver
are
theoretically
at
risk
of
deportation.
But
the
Friday
deadline
cannot
be
met,
says
the
ZEP
Holders
Association
(Zepha),
because
there
is
a
backlog
of
several
months
for
general
worker
visa
and
waiver
applications.
Zepha
expects
Minister
of
Home
Affairs
Leon
Schreiber
to
extend
the
deadline,
as
was
done
by
his
predecessor
Aaron
Motsoaledi
in
2023.
‘Self-created
crisis’
for
Home
Affairs
“The
November
2024
deadline
for
the
ZEP
is
yet
another
self-created
crisis
for
the
Department
of
Home
Affairs,”
says
Advocate
Simba
Chitando,
who
is
representing
Zepha.
“Many
ZEP
holders,
for
the
same
bureaucratic
constraints
within
the
Department
that
have
haunted
government,
will
not
be
able
to
make
the
deadline
for
no
fault
of
their
own.”
Many
ZEP
holders
have
been
unable
to
get
appointments
at
VFS
Global
offices,
where
permit
applications
are
handled
on
behalf
of
DHA.
“Last
week
the
minister
admitted
that
some
of
their
systems
are
overwhelmed.
“I’ve
no
doubt
that
he
will
have
no
choice
but
to
extend
the
deadline
yet
again
to
avoid
a
catastrophic
failure
to
document
ZEP
holders,”
adds
Chitando.
“In
my
view,
the
ZEP
crisis
could
have
been
avoided
years
ago
if
the
government
had
not
made
the
decisions
that
the
courts
have
found
to
be
unlawful,
and
instead
allowed
ZEP
holders
to
apply
for
permanent
residence
in
the
country
after
living
in
South
Africa
lawfully
for
the
prescribed
time
to
qualify
for
residency
in
the
Republic.”
Years
of
uncertainty
Some
178
000
ZEP
holders
in
SA
have
faced
an
uncertain
future
in
SA
for
years.
The
previous
permit
expiry
date
in
November
2023
was
extended
for
another
two
years
under
the
condition
that
Zimbabwean
and
Lesotho
exemption
permit
holders
could
not
thereafter
apply
for
permanent
residence
in
SA.
This
is
currently
being
challenged
in
court,
with
ZEP
holders
–
many
of
them
living
and
paying
tax
in
SA
for
more
than
15
years
–
claiming
the
minister
has
the
authority
to
grant
them
permanent
residence.
While
the
two-year
extension
in
2023
gave
ZEP
holders
some
breathing
space,
it
did
not
remove
the
uncertainty
of
their
legal
status
in
SA,
or
that
of
their
families.
ZEP
holders
were
instructed
to
apply
for
alternative
visas,
such
as
a
general
worker
visa,
to
cement
their
legal
status
in
the
country.
“Unfortunately,
it
seems
this
deadline
causes
headaches
for
many
as
they
struggle
to
secure
submission
dates
at
offices
of
VFS
Global
[which
handles
visa
and
waiver
applications
for
DHA],”
says
Xpatweb,
which
provides
services
to
expatriates.
New
systems
Schreiber
launched
a
new
system
to
issue
visas
digitally
via
email,
which
helped
in
the
processing
of
more
than
60
000
ZEP
waiver
applications,
many
of
them
dating
back
to
2022.
ZEP
holders
now
receive
waiver
letters
via
email,
a
system
that
is
being
extended
to
other
visa
applicants.
Marisa
Jacobs,
MD
of
Xpatweb,
says
ZEP
holders
who
applied
and
received
waivers
can
then
submit
their
applications
for
general
work
visas.
In
October,
the
DHA
introduced
a
new
points-based
system
for
work
visas
to
combat
corruption
and
inefficiency
and
reduce
red
tape.
The
use
of
a
transparent
points
scale
allows
DHA
to
objectively
determine
who
qualifies
for
a
critical
skills
or
general
work
visa.
Home
Affairs
clean-up
Schreiber
has
been
commended
for
starting
to
clean
house
at
DHA,
recently
dismissing
18
officials
across
the
country
for
a
range
of
offences
including
fraud,
corruption,
and
sexual
harassment.
A
further
four
were
given
written
warnings.
The
offences
include
irregular
processing
and
granting
of
ID
documents,
marriage
certificates,
passports
and
visas.
“The
dismissal
and
disciplining
of
errant
officials
[is]
the
result
of
the
further
intensification
of
our
clampdown
on
corruption,
fraud
and
maladministration,
and
reflects
the
intensification
of
cooperation
between
Home
Affairs,
the
Special
Investigating
Unit,
and
the
Hawks,”
said
Schreiber.
“Where
prosecutable
offences
have
been
committed,
the
dockets
will
be
referred
for
criminal
prosecution.”