Answers to your questions
Have a question you would like answered? Email us and we may answer it. The questions here are based on ones from our readers, with identifying information removed.
Please note: GroundUp is just a news agency. We are not lawyers or financial advisors, and we have nothing to do with SASSA, Home Affairs, or any other government bodies. We do our best to make the answers accurate using publicly available information, but we cannot accept any legal liability if there are errors. If you notice any discrepancies, please email [email protected].
How do I get a critical skills visa?
You need to apply online for a critical skills visa through VFS Global, the company that handles all Home Affairs applications.
How can I can assist my partner change his status from asylum seeker to temporary or permanent resident? Home Affairs ignores us.
Your frustration with Home Affairs is understandable. You may want to get legal assistance.
Can a person go to prison for jumping the border?
You can be sentenced to up to 12 months in prison for entering the country illegally.
How do I change my status from asylum seeker to resident?
A person applying for temporary residence has to apply from outside of the country, but you can get an exemption from this by applying to Home Affairs through VFS Global..
Can I buy a plot of land from the municipality?
As far as we can establish, municipal land is only sold by a tender process after it is advertised for public participation.
Can I apply for an affordable flat in the new building in Sea Point?
The block of flats (which will be called “The Fulcrum”) has not yet been built.
Can my sister, who waited ten years for a house, be rejected from getting one because she has since got married?
Marriage does not disqualify her from getting an RDP house, unless her husband’s income is above R3,500 a month.
What can I do to stop my former landlord giving bad references about me to agents?
You can approach the Housing Tribunal and ask that your former landlord be stopped from giving bad references.
Home Affairs told me that asylum seekers cannot apply for permanent residence. Doesn't this contradict a Constitutional Court ruling?
Asylum seekers (i.e. people who do not hold refugee status) may apply for a residence permit.
Home Affairs declared my husband an undesirable person for five years because he overstayed his visit. Can this be overturned?
Your husband can appeal to the Minister of Home Affairs.