The government will ask a court to supervise how a July Constitutional Court ruling on asylum seekers is carried out, Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi announced at a media briefing in Pretoria.

Kubayi, who chairs the inter-ministerial committee on migration, said the government wants a supervisory order and possibly a period of suspension so the Department of Home Affairs can strengthen its administrative, staffing, infrastructure and processing capacity. A panel of judges appointed by Gauteng Judge President Aubrey Ledwaba will hear the bid on 29 October, according to reports.

“The objective is not to delay compliance, but to ensure effective and sustainable compliance,” Kubayi said. She said the government remains bound by the existing order.

What the government is asking for

Kubayi said the government was “duly advised” that it could seek a supervisory order, under which the court would keep oversight of implementation and guide timelines. The court would decide the scope of any supervision and the length of any suspension.

She acknowledged public frustration, saying “we understand the impatience”, and warned that failure to comply with the existing order could amount to contempt of court. The panel will also consider two conflicting directives on asylum seekers issued in separate judgments of the Gauteng division.

The new registration system

Home Affairs is expected to launch a phased online intention-registration and appointment system by 10 November 2026, the committee said. Applicants would receive a receipt with their details, biometrics and a reference number, plus an appointment at a Refugee Reception Office. Assisted registration is planned, including for people in police or immigration detention.

The receipt is not a section 22 visa and does not confer refugee status. The committee said holders of valid receipts are protected from removal, arrest or detention solely for lacking a visa while their applications are processed. Applicants who have been rejected cannot reactivate that protection by declaring a new intention.

Other steps announced: refugee reception centres will move to ports of entry, starting with Beitbridge in December; the Minister of Home Affairs is drafting legislation aligned with the Revised White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection, which the committee wants fast-tracked; and the government will consider public proposals on refugee camps.

Background

The Constitutional Court's judgment of 7 July 2026 struck down provisions of the Refugees Act that allowed asylum seekers to be deported for entering without a transit visa. Last week, violent protests in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng saw vehicles and houses torched and shops looted, and protesters, including members of the March and March movement, blocked the Home Affairs office in Berea, Durban. Insight reported earlier that Home Affairs withdrew an asylum directive after the protests while the court ruling stands.

The reports reviewed give no casualty or arrest totals for the protests; our earlier reporting recorded 30 arrests in Durban and Soweto.

What we do not yet know

  • Which court will decide the bid. One report says the application goes to the Constitutional Court, another that a panel appointed by the Gauteng Judge President hears it; this needs confirmation from the Justice Department.
  • The date of the announcement; reports give it as Sunday 11 or Monday 12 October.
  • How long a suspension period the government will ask for, and whether Home Affairs has published the registration system's technical details.
  • Whether the 10 November target will hold; it is described as expected, not guaranteed.