Automatic 3 months visa extension for foreigners stuck in South Africa

On Saturday, 1 August, a range of foreign visitors in South Africa would have faced being declared undesirable after having overstayed their visas.

But just hours before that, on Friday afternoon, home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi gazetted a new set of directions to extend the validity of already-extended permits and visas.

The effect is that some visitors to SA who entered the country after 15 March now automatically have permission to remain until at least 31 October, regardless of the date on their paperwork. They will face no penalty on exiting SA before that date.

For refugees, asylum seekers, and holders of special Lesotho permits, the extension if automatic, with no application required.

Conditions attached to visas and permits also remain unaltered, so those who were not allowed to seek employment still may not do so.

Somewhat optimistically in retrospect, the extensions were all granted until 31 July.

business insider