Home Affairs indefinitely suspends Smart ID Card applications

Home Affairs has released a statement detailing services that it has suspended under the Level 3 lockdown restrictions, in an effort to discourage physical visits to the nationwide branches.

The Department of Home Affairs took to Twitter on Wednesday, 13 January 2021, to circulate a statement approved by Minister Aaron Motsoaledi on its suspended services. The suspension of some of the department’s services is indefinite, and is expected to last for as long as the country remains under Alert Level 3 restrictions.

According to the statement, three primary services that have been suspended include applications for a Smart ID Card, with the exception of matriculants; passport applications, unless otherwise already approved to travel out of the country; and marriage services, inclusive of solemnisation and registration.

The statement further noted, “For collection of ID, please do not come to Home Affairs unless you are specifically invited via an SMS. We have also decided to change some of the modalities in which Home Affairs services are provided. We are proposing that all births and deaths be registered at the health facilities where they occur. These are the 156 health facilities with Home Affairs office presence. A list of these hospitals is available via this link.”

Additionally, despite having suspended its services, the statement confirmed that the offices will remain open on weekdays at reduced hours. For the foreseeable future, the Home Affairs offices will open between 08:00 and 15:30.

See the post below.

[MEDIA STATEMENT] Priority services to be offered during adjusted alert level 3 of the #lockdown by Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi https://t.co/AHpAVgiZY1

— HomeAffairsSA (@HomeAffairsSA) January 13, 2021

Sabelo Makhubo
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