CHILDREN with foreign
passports travelling with
both parents, who have
the same surname, will soon
no longer have to present an
unabridged birth certificate at
SA immigration, according to
an updated advisory by the
DHA, published on March 22.
It has taken the DHA
almost four months to
correct an advisory it issued
on December 1, which was
in direct conflict with the
regulations it had gazetted
the day before the advisory
was published.
Referring to foreign minors,
the key paragraph 3.1 of the
advisory has been changed
to read: “Where both parents
are travelling accompanied by
one or more of their children,
such children have to
produce valid passports and
visas, where applicable.”
There is no longer any
mention of a birth certificate.
Minors with passports from
countries that require a visa
for SA must present the birth
certificate when they submit
a visa application, but they
will not have to travel with
them.
As with many countries,
there are special
requirements for
unaccompanied children,
where one parent is not
present, or surnames differ.
Making it official
An official communication
had to be sent from the
airline liaison desk at the
DHA to Iata before regulation
changes could come into
effect on Iata’s Travel
Information Manual Automatic
(Timatic) system, Ndiphiwe
Ntuli, gm of the Board of
Airline Representatives of SA,
explained to TNW.
Timatic informs airport
ground staff about the border
passenger documentation
required when entering and
leaving South Africa.
TNW understands that
the DHA has submitted this
communication to Iata and
that Iata is in the process of
checking the information.
Until such time as the
regulation update is loaded
on to the system and is
viewable by airline check-in
staff, the current requirement
for children having to produce
a valid passport and a UBC
remains in place.
The concession in
paragraph 3.1 does not apply
to SA minors.
