South Africa: Constitutional Court win paves the way for immigration progress
Published: 2/Feb/2019
Source: Mail & Guardian (South Africa)
COMMENT
Immigration law expert Stefanie de Saude Darbandi, representing a family from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), has helped bring about a change in immigration law by taking the case to the high court and Constitutional Court. This welcome development secures a change in the regulations relating to citizenship by naturalisation, allowing foreigners to apply for citizenship after five years’ permanent residence.
Darbandi, representing the Mulowayi family from DRC, took their case to the Western Cape high court and then the Constitutional Court after their application for citizenship was rejected on the grounds that regulations stated they had to be resident in South Africa for 10 years before they could apply. She argued that regulations prescribing a 10-year period of residence before a foreigner can apply for citizenship were contrary to the Citizenship Act, which prescribes only a five-year period.
Darbandi applied to the Constitutional Court, effectively for confirmation of an order of the Western Cape high court, declaring regulation 3(2)(a) of the Regulations on the South African Citizenship Act, 1995 invalid and setting aside the regulation.
Read further: https://mg.co.za/article/2019-02-02-00-constitutional-court-win-paves-the-way-for-immigration-progress