“South Africans stranded abroad can apply for a temporary emergency one-way passport”

Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi says South Africans stranded abroad with expired passports can apply for a temporary emergency one-way passport in order to come back home. Motsoaledi has been briefing the media in Pretoria on regulations under alert Level 2 of the nationwide lockdown.

On August 18, the country went into alert Level 2 which opened up some domestic travel but international travel remains banned.

Many countries, including South Africa, have closed borders and halted international air travel in a bid to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Motsoaledi says passports cannot be renewed or extended. “The rules that governs passports are not rules of the Department of Home Affairs but they are rules of an organisation called International Civil Organisation (IACAO). They govern passports and every country who is a member has to follow those rules. According to those rules a passport is never extended. Then what is the remedy if you are stuck overseas and you want to come to South Africa, you are given a temporary one-way passport. In other words, it’s just to allow you to get into that plane and arrive home and enter South Africa.”

Below is the live stream of Minister Motsoaledi’s briefing: