New immigration laws could hamper tourism

Responding to the recent announcement by the Department of Home Affairs on the amendments to the Immigrations Act, associations and councils within the sector said the regulations, which introduced restrictions on obtaining visas, had sparked concern and confusion.

“The council is concerned that some regulations included in the new act pose a significant threat to the sustainability of a large portion of businesses in the local travel and tourism trade,” Tourism Business Council of South Africa said in a statement.

The council noted with concern two specific regulations; namely the new requirement for an unabridged birth certificate for minors, and the provision for in-person collection of biometric processed visas – which it feared would be damaging to tourism in South Africa and neighbouring countries.

The council’s chief executive officer, Mmatšatši Ramawela said it acknowledged the prerogative and duty of the Department of Home Affairs to protect the country’s boarders and to tackle issues around human trafficking, but was concerned about its adverse effects.

“Greater engagement was key to find a workable solution which would not have adverse implications for the travel and tourism trade,” she said.

David Frost, chief executive officer of the Southern Africa Tourism Services Associations, said in the wake of the announcement his office has been inundated with letters of concern from tour operators all over the world.

“The requirement of carrying an original unabridged birth certificate, or a certified copy thereof, as well as a sworn translation if needed, acts as an additional hurdle that damages our competitiveness as a destination,” he said.

He said this created a barrier to entry, with financial and opportunity costs that prospective tourists needed to overcome in order to travel to the country.

Further Frost said there is widespread confusion on exactly what is actually required. “For example, in the event of a single parent who does not have contact with the other biological parent, an affidavit is required… Furthermore, foreign language birth certificates will have to be translated,” he said.

This would add time and costs that a potential traveller would have to consider before travelling to South Africa, he said.

The council also said that the problem with biometric visas was that the biometric data gathering points would only be available in limited centres in certain countries, such as India and China, with a vast geographic spread.

Meanwhile, the Department of Home Affairs has already been taken to court over the controversial new immigration regulations. A Western Cape High Court ruled in favour of two families torn apart by new immigration regulations, ordering that their foreign spouses be allowed to re-enter the country.