Apparently this is being done to prevent child trafficking, but tourism experts say this will be extremely detrimental to South Africa’s tourism industry, combined with various other visa disasters foreign embassies have come up in the past few months.
What are the new rules with regards to minors? All children under 18 years or age will now be required to produce an unabridged birth certificate showing the particulars of both their parents, in addition to their passport, when entering and exiting South Africa by land, sea or air. This all kicks off on 1 June. If minors travel without these documents, they could be denied from boarding.
Along with an unabridged birth certificate, the child will need an affidavit from the absent parent which gives consent for the child to travel. The affidavit should not be older than three months from date of travel.
Alternatively, the child should have with them a court order granting legal guardianship or full parental responsibilities of the child, or a death certificate of the absent parent.
When minors travel with a person other than a parent or legal guardian, they should carry an unabridged birth certificate as well as copies of the ID documents or passports of the parents or legal guardians, contact details of the parents or legal guardians and affidavits from both parents or legal guardians confirming that the child may travel with that person.
If children travel unaccompanied, they will need an unabridged birth certificate and proof of consent from both parents or legal guardians and contact details as well as documents from the person receiving the child in South Africa. These documents must include a letter with the person’s contact details, residential address, details about where the child will be residing, as well as a copy of his or her ID documents, passport or residence permit.
Should the child travel with an unabridged birth certificate in another language, they also need passports from other countries with unabridged birth certificates from their respective countries of nationality. If the child’s unabridged birth certificate is not in English it must be accompanied by a sworn translation (we assume into English) issued by an authority from their country.
