Leon Schreiber Eases Immigration Directive 13 of 2026 60-Day Advance-Filing Requirement

South Africa’s Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber waived the 60-day advance-filing requirement for some in-country visa applications under Immigration Directive 13 of 2026. The measure applies to extensions and applications to change visa status or conditions, and was reportedly signed on October 10, 2026.

Previously, Immigration Regulations 9(8)(c) and 9(5)(a) generally required applicants to file at least 60 days before their existing visa expired. Eligible applicants can now apply during the final 60 days of a valid visa.

The expiry date remains the limit. The directive does not allow applicants to lodge a normal in-country application after their visa expires.

It also reaches back to some cases already in the system. Pending applications, certain earlier cases and appeals based solely on the missed deadline fall within the measure’s retrospective scope.

Older deadline-based refusals can return for review

A refusal based only on missing the deadline may be reconsidered through the appeal process. The directive allows affected appeals to be addressed so the underlying applications can be assessed on their merits, rather than rejected at the initial review solely because they arrived inside the final 60 days.

The relief also reaches some family cases. If a principal applicant’s deadline-based refusal led to related refusals for dependants, the department may process those applications alongside the principal case.

That is not an automatic approval. Applicants still have to satisfy the substantive requirements for their visa category and follow the prescribed process, generally through Visa Facilitation Services, or VFS.

Applicants still need to file before their visa expires

Foreign nationals in South Africa seeking an extension or a change to their visa status or conditions should check the expiry date and submit before that date. They should retain proof of submission and any VFS appointment confirmation or acknowledgment.

The change removes the need for a separate waiver solely because an application arrived fewer than 60 days before expiry. It does not cure an overstay or create permission to file after a visa has expired.

The 60-day rule has been in the regulations since 2014. Historically, it operated as a filing discipline rather than an automatic bar: applicants with “good cause” for filing during the last 60 days could explain their circumstances and request condonation.

The department cited unintended consequences from rigid enforcement

The Department of Home Affairs said rigid application of the two regulations had produced what it called “unintended consequences.” The directive reportedly records that the minister acted after receiving “representations” about those effects.

Jaco Brits, Head of Immigration at Xpatweb, said retrospective treatment could help resolve refusals and appeals that had accumulated under the deadline’s strict application.

“The retrospective application of the waiver is important given the scale of the impact experienced by applicants.”

Brits cautioned that cases may take time to move through the system.

“While it may take several months for the affected cases to work through the system, we are encouraged by the feedback received from the Department and are confident that we are on track towards resolving these matters.”

Xpatweb said it had seen a significant increase in visa refusals during the preceding year where missing the 60-day period was the sole stated reason. Those decisions added to the appeal backlog.

Appeals remain part of a wider Home Affairs queue

At the Xpatweb Global Mobility Conference in Johannesburg, Yusuf Simons, Acting Deputy Director-General for Immigration Services, said approximately 20,000 waivers were finalized within two months after responsibility shifted to a lower delegation.

“The process is now flowing.”

Simons also said the department had fast-tracked approximately 300,000 visas caught in a historic backlog stretching back a decade. Some adjudication errors made during that effort later generated appeals.

A July 28, 2026 tally put pending appeals at 21,847. Of those, 13,148, or 60.2%, were overdue. The department set a target of clearing all overdue applications by March 31, 2027.

Marisa Jacobs, Xpatweb’s managing director, said delays in finalizing appeals and waiver applications continued to disrupt multinational companies and large employers. She said complete applications that meet the requirements and align with department strategies can move more smoothly through the system.

Other visa measures have changed alongside the filing rule

The filing directive sits alongside other 2026 changes to South Africa’s immigration processes:

• A web-based waiver system allows applicants to upload outstanding waiver applications for processing.
• A July 2026 change removed medical-report requirements for certain temporary-residence visa and permanent-residence permit applicants. Earlier relief had addressed the radiological-report requirement.
• Police-clearance certificates now cover the five years immediately before the application, replacing the requirement for certificates from every country where an applicant lived for at least 12 months after turning 18.
• The electronic travel authorization platform was live for short-stay visa applications from 53 countries as of the minister’s October 1, 2026 address.

Jacobs said the quality and alignment of applications can affect how smoothly they move through the system. “Where applications are complete, accurately prepared, meet the applicable requirements and are aligned with DHA strategies, they can move more smoothly through the system.”