- South African investigators uncovered systemic corruption within the Department of Home Affairs involving the sale of fraudulent visas.
- Low-level officials allegedly amassed millions in bribes, using e-wallets and spouses’ accounts to conceal illicit financial gains.
- High-profile figures and religious leaders obtained permanent residence permits through fabricated documents and collusion with department personnel.
(SOUTH AFRICA) — A Special Investigating Unit probe presented on February 23, 2026 found that officials in South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs sold visas and permanent residence permits to unqualified foreign nationals and amassed illicit wealth through bribes and concealed payments.
Acting Head Leonard Lekgetho presented the findings, which described what investigators called systemic corruption inside the Department of Home Affairs, the government department central to administering immigration status.
The SIU said direct deposits of at least R16.3 million flowed to four low-level officials who earned under R25,000 monthly, while investigators traced broader financial gains exceeding R181 million from fraudulent applications backed by fake documents.
Lekgetho’s presentation framed the conduct as a blow to immigration integrity, describing a system in which legitimate processes could be bypassed for payment and fraudulent approvals could produce visas and permanent residence permits for people who did not qualify.
Investigators said officials treated the immigration system as a “marketplace,” where applications could be advanced and approved for the highest bidder, including requests submitted on WhatsApp rather than through normal channels.
The SIU said payments were routed in ways designed to reduce scrutiny, including through spouses’ accounts, e-wallets and cash placed inside application forms, as well as in-kind benefits such as private rent coverage.
Transfers through e-wallets ranged from R500–R3,000 per transaction, the probe found, a pattern that can make detection harder by splitting payments into smaller amounts and spreading them across multiple channels.
Investigators also described concealment tactics that included dummy phones and disguised references such as “Permit” and “Visa Process,” which the SIU said signaled efforts to hide the real purpose of communications and payments.
The SIU findings warned that beneficiaries of fraudulent immigration documents can face serious consequences if authorities later audit permits or discover that approvals relied on false records, even when a foreign national claims an intermediary handled the process.
Financial tracing formed a central part of the SIU’s work, with investigators describing how proceeds of alleged corruption can move into personal networks and business vehicles that complicate efforts to tie money directly to an official’s salary.
One official’s spouse received unexplained deposits totaling R8.9 million from 2020–2023 into the official’s husband’s construction firm, the SIU said, with R185,000 explicitly tied to permanent residence permits.
Another official earning a R25,000 salary built a mansion and paved road, according to the SIU, a lifestyle indicator investigators highlighted as part of the picture of illicit enrichment.
The SIU’s presentation distinguished between investigative findings and what courts ultimately determine, while laying out how lifestyle changes, deposits and communications patterns can support investigative leads and referrals.
Among those the SIU said allegedly colluded with officials were self-proclaimed prophet Shepherd Bushiri, pastor Timothy Omotoso, and Nigerian rapper Prince Daniel Obioma, who performs under the stage name 3GAR.
Investigators said influence, church networks and fabricated documents featured in the alleged efforts to obtain permanent residence permits, with religious figures and entertainment personalities named as examples of how high-profile beneficiaries can draw attention to gaps in enforcement.
The SIU also highlighted a case involving Kudakwashe Mpofu, who it said paid R3,000 via an agent for a fraudulent 2018 permanent residence permit.
Investigators said the permit carried irregularities that included the wrong font, misspellings and an invalid stamp, and the SIU said the fraudulent status enabled Mpofu to obtain high-level jobs at North West Development Corporation.
Mpofu was convicted and received three years’ correctional supervision, the SIU said, adding that it was seeking a National Prosecuting Authority appeal.
The investigation began after a whistleblower alert in May 2024 that the SIU said pointed to syndicates operating around immigration processes.
President Cyril Ramaphosa issued a 2024 proclamation that provided the legal basis for the SIU’s work, according to the probe’s timeline of actions and findings.
The SIU and the Hawks carried out raids at five refugee centers, seizing devices and files as investigators sought to map networks, identify decision points inside Home Affairs processes and match communications with approvals.
Cellphone analysis played a continuing role in the probe, with the SIU saying ongoing examination confirmed communications between officials and foreign nationals.
The SIU also described an identity fraud scheme it said created downstream risks beyond immigration status, involving foreign nationals who accessed Department of Home Affairs offices to swap photos onto South African citizens’ fingerprints.
Investigators said the method enabled passports to be used in overseas crimes or refugee claims, distinguishing the alleged conduct from simpler document forgery by tying identity manipulation to biometric records.
Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber outlined anti-corruption steps in response to the SIU’s work, while the probe said cases had been referred to the National Prosecuting Authority for prosecution.
Schreiber and the SIU emphasized that no public funds were involved, a factor the probe said limited civil recovery even as referrals and potential criminal cases proceed.
The minister also emphasized that the issue was limited to a small group of low-level officials, the SIU presentation said, as investigators continued analyzing devices and records tied to permits and visas.
The probe’s allegations described how compromised border systems could enable unassessed asylum claims that later led to permanent residence permits and citizenship, linking weak controls to outcomes that can take years to unwind.
For applicants, the SIU findings underscored the risks of “informal” channels that bypass official systems, with investigators describing how intermediaries can market access, take payments and leave applicants exposed when approvals are later scrutinized.
The SIU said the probe remained ongoing, with investigators continuing to analyze seized devices and trace communication patterns that can help establish networks, intent and quid pro quo arrangements.
Further steps can include additional referrals to prosecutors, internal disciplinary processes and administrative action inside the Department of Home Affairs, as authorities check whether visas and permanent residence permits were issued on the basis of false documents and bribery.
The SIU’s presentation described a system in which concealed payments, dummy phones and coded references sat alongside altered documentation and alleged collusion, leaving South Africa’s immigration controls vulnerable to manipulation even at relatively low transaction amounts.
With the investigation continuing and cases in prosecutors’ hands, the SIU portrayed the challenge as restoring confidence in the Department of Home Affairs processes that determine who receives visas and permanent residence permits, and who does not.
