{"id":54718,"date":"2026-04-02T09:34:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T09:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=54718"},"modified":"2026-04-02T09:34:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T09:34:09","slug":"good-news-for-expats-in-sa-home-affairs-grants-15-month-visa-extension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/04\/02\/good-news-for-expats-in-sa-home-affairs-grants-15-month-visa-extension\/","title":{"rendered":"Home Affairs grants 15-month visa extension"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>South Africa\u2019s Department of Home Affairs has granted expats and foreign workers with pending visa-related applications <strong>a 15-month extension<\/strong>. <\/p>\n<p>This will allow them to <strong>remain legally in the country<\/strong> while processing delays are resolved.<\/p>\n<p>The temporary concession was confirmed in <strong>Immigration Directive No. 7 of 2026<\/strong>, signed this week by Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber.<\/p>\n<p>The measure applies to expats waiting for the outcome of <strong>waiver, long-term visa or appeal applications<\/strong> submitted through VFS Global.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Department has\u2026 made significant progress in addressing historic backlogs in its visa and permit regime,\u201d the directive states.<\/p>\n<p>However, it adds that <strong>not all applications have been finalised in time<\/strong>, which has prompted the extension.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-visa-extension-until-june-2027\">Visa extension until June 2027<\/h2>\n<p>Expats whose applications are still pending will be allowed to stay in South Africa until <strong>30 June 2027<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>The extension applies to people who applied for long-term visas under sections 11 to 20 of the Immigration Act, including work visas.<\/p>\n<p>Applicants must continue to follow the <strong>conditions of their current visas<\/strong> while waiting for a decision.<\/p>\n<p>Those awaiting outcomes can also <strong>leave and re-enter South Africa<\/strong> during this period without being declared undesirable.<\/p>\n<p>Travellers from countries that normally require visas may still need to obtain a <strong>port-of-entry visa before returning<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-who-qualifies-for-the-visa-concession\">Who qualifies for the visa concession?<\/h2>\n<p>Home Affairs says the temporary extension only applies to certain expats whose applications are still pending.<\/p>\n<p>To qualify, applicants must:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Have entered South Africa legally.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Have submitted a visa, waiver or appeal application through VFS Global.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Be able to produce a valid receipt or confirmation showing the application is still pending.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cThe above temporary measures will apply only to those foreign nationals who have been legally admitted into the Republic,\u201d the concession notes. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis Directive is also only applicable to applicants who have submitted an application via VFS Global and who can produce a verifiable receipt for such application against the VFS Global tracking system.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-some-exceptions\">Some exceptions\u2026<\/h2>\n<p>Those expats waiting for decisions may remain in the country until 30 June 2027 and can travel in and out of South Africa without being declared undesirable.<\/p>\n<p>However, travellers from countries that require visas must apply for a port-of-entry visa before returning.<\/p>\n<p>The concession does not apply to permanent residence applications. Applicants waiting for permanent residence must ensure they still hold a valid visa while their application is processed.<\/p>\n<p>There is also <strong>an important exclusion<\/strong>: People appealing a rejected visitor visa renewal that has been pending for more than three months must leave South Africa by 30 April 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Home #Affairs #grants #15month #visa #extension<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Africa\u2019s Department of Home Affairs has granted expats and foreign workers with pending visa-related applications a 15-month extension. This&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":54719,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54718"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54718\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54720,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54718\/revisions\/54720"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}