Hoping to get back to Cape Town

February has been incredibly eventful in regards to my South African visa status.  Ultimately I was hoping to get back the first week of January in order to continue work.  As a result of the unfortunate confusion with South African immigration legislation, the process has been overly complicated and I have been caught in a dark hole, known as South Africa Home Affairs, aboard the incredibly busy and populated Appeal Department.  While there are many people in my same situation, it isn't looking good.

IBN is large business and immigration consultancy in South Africa and their Nkazie Nyathi has written a two part article( part 1, part 2) on the inefficiency of the Department of Home Affairs.  To summarize[ although it makes for as interesting reading as watching the 2016 USA Presidential Debates],

• 90% of visa rejections are unjustified
• 100's of applications are currently in the appeal process
• 6-8 month average waiting period
• DHA was taken to the High Court by immigration practitioners last year and the blame was placed on its administrative capacity.
• "The best advise we can currently give is to make sure that landing (your paperwork) in the appeal section pile is avoided by preparing an immaculate application pack and being aware of the most common potential pitfalls."