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Regularising Zimbabwean migration to South Africa
Forced Migration Studies Programme, Wits University
May 2009

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Regularising Zimbabwean Migration to South Africa

On 3 April 2009, the Department of Home Affairs announced its intention to grant Zimbabweans in South Africa a twelve-month 'special dispensation permit' on the basis of the 2002 Immigration Act, section 31 (2)(b). This permit grants the right to legally live and work in the country. As complementary measures, a moratorium on deportations and a 90-day free visa for Zimbabweans entering South Africa have been implemented from May 2009.

This policy brief outlines the key reasons why this new package of policies, especially the special dispensation permit, is in South Africa's best interest. It responds to perceptions that, in the context of a recession and a newly elected administration, regularising Zimbabean migration may not be a priority or that it may have negative impacts for South Africans. In fact, the regularisation of Zimbabwean migration is consistent with and complementary to many of the key goals of the new administration.

Key Messages

• The new set of policies regularising movement between South Africa and Zimbabwe represents a positive shift towards a rational, coherent and regionally beneficial migration management approach. Previous aproaches to managing Zimbabwean migration (including the asylum system and widespread arrest and detention) did not address the nature or scale of movement and so resulted in high levels of illegal migration, rights abuses, and negative impacts for South Africa.
• The introduction of special temporary permits to manage complex mixed migrations is increasingly common internationally. South Africa is likely to receive significant international recognition and support for adopting this policy, given widespread interest in supporting regional stability and Zimbabwean reconstruction.
• Regularising movement between South Africa and Zimbabwe will help the new government achieve its development goals by facilitating efforts to combat corruption, protect labour standards, up-skill the economy and fight crime. While the free visa and special dispensation permit are clearly insufficient to achieve these broader policy aims on its own, these challenges will be much more difficult to tackle without the effective implementation of the permit.
• The new policies are unlikely to increase overall volumes of migration from Zimbabwe to South Africa. In fact, they are likely to enable Zimbabweans in South Africa to return more rapidly.
• Out of a range of legal policy options for regularising movement between Zimbabwe and South Africa, the proposed special dispensation permit is the most appropriate to the context (Zimbabweans' need to work and to move freely between countries) and most easily implemented.

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