SA’S Immigration Act is again in
the spotlight, this time raising
concerns about the requirements
for hotels to keep personal details of
guests.
The Department of Home Affairs
(DHA) requires all accommodation
establishments to keep a register
containing details of all guests –
including locals. According to the Act,
the register must contain guests’ full
names, a copy of their ID or passport,
residence status and address. Failure
to comply with these regulations could
mean jail time of up to 12 months
for both the hotelier and the guest.
Previously, South Africans only
needed to show their ID to verify their
identity as they do for airline and
vehicle rental companies.
However, establishments say guests
are refusing to comply because
of privacy concerns. Donovan
Muirhead, chairman of the National
Accommodation Association SA, says
accommodation establishments have
experienced pushback from clients,
particularly with repeat guests where
the documents have been submitted
before. “Guests refuse to have a
copy of their ID made due to ID theft
issues,” says Lyndsay Jackson, gm of
Guest House Accommodation of SA.
“As an industry we are concerned
because of the level of resistance from
our clients who do not want to provide
their IDs for copies to be made. The
implications are immense, with some
accommodation establishments opting
not to comply for fear of
losing business and damaging
relations with their major
long-term clients, especially
the corporate segment,” says
Mmatšatši Ramawela, ceo of
the Tourism Business Council
of South Africa.
She says the industry
believes the DHA should have
informed the public upfront
about this regulation instead
of leaving it to them to field
the anger and abuse from
guests who feel they are being
treated as immigrants in their
own country.
Conflict with POPI
Other concerns, Mmatšatši
says, are around the
regulation’s conflict with
the Protection of Personal
Information (POPI) Act.
In terms of the POPI Act,
a guest registration page
or card must now be used,
says Donovan. “This hard
information should be
stored in a secure file with
all the relevant supporting
documents for the booking
and payment. If documents
are kept electronically,
establishments must
ensure that the appropriate
security considerations are
implemented and that their
systems are regularly updated
with the latest security
software to protect the data.”
“When we realised that the
challenges of implementing
the regulations were
increasing, we brought the
matter to the attention to the
Department of Home Affairs,”
says Mmatšatši. The purpose
is to engage with the DHA
to find viable ways to comply
with the regulations. “We want
to work with government to
improve security in the country
but we need government to do
their bit to inform the public
when they change regulations,
which will make it easier for
us to implement, and thus
comply.”
Why has the DHA introduced
the regulation? Spokesperson,
Mayihlome Tshwete, says
the legislation aims to ensure
the safety of hotel guests
in the event of accidents or
natural disasters. “The DHA
is also obligated to know
the whereabouts of those
sojourning in the country.”
Guests who want to take
part in illegal or dubious
activities are put off by the fact
that a copy of their identity is
now required, says Donovan.
“Guests wishing to bilk or
make fraudulent reservations
with other people’s credit
cards run a greater risk of
getting caught.”
Communication has been
key in terms of the successful
implementation, says Nicholas
Barenblatt, sales and
marketing manager of Protea
Hotels.
“We have used all available
touchpoints with our
customers, both individual
travellers and our travel
partners, to make them aware
of this requirement prior to
check-in.”
