Employer Information on Refugee and Asylum Status in South Africa

A refugee or asylum document contains details that a business may need to check before opening an account, hiring someone or giving access to a service. In South Africa, the identity lookup starts with the NIIS file number printed on the person’s document. That number is the lookup key. VerifyNow returns a full identity verification report built from the source response and the available identity record.

Run a refugee or asylum ID verification from your VerifyNow dashboard. You can also view the service and sample report before running a check.

General information only. This guide provides general educational information as at 3 August 2026. Nothing on this page constitutes legal advice, a legal opinion, a Home Affairs decision or a compliance guarantee. Employers remain responsible for checking current original documents, applying the law to their circumstances, obtaining advice from a qualified South African immigration or labour lawyer and making their own employment decisions.

Laws, court orders and Home Affairs processes may change. The information is provided as-is. Readers use it at their own risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, VerifyNow excludes responsibility and liability for any decision, loss, penalty, claim or cost arising from use of this guide or reliance on its contents. The VerifyNow Terms and Conditions apply.

Employer information at a glance

What the full VerifyNow report contains

The service accepts a South African refugee or asylum NIIS file number. Its format contains 3 to 6 letters followed by 9 to 12 digits. Enter the number exactly as it appears on the document because a missing letter or transposed digit changes the lookup.

Every completed VerifyNow report carries the verification outcome, request status, source result code and text, service, issuing state, report reference and check time. A successful lookup can also include the verified NIIS file number, the person’s names, date of birth, gender and nationality. Some records return an expiry date, a secondary identity number and a photograph. The identity fields shown depend on the information available in the source record at the time of the check.

The authenticated PDF presents this information as a structured identity verification report that the reviewer can download for the organisation’s records.

A practical verification workflow

1. Read the file number from the original document

Ask the person for the current document that carries their NIIS file number. Type the value into VerifyNow without spaces or punctuation. The form checks the expected pattern before submitting it.

2. Run the ID verification

VerifyNow sends the file number to the identity source and receives the verification response. The platform turns that response into the full report, including its result fields and any available identity details. A successful response means the source found that NIIS number.

3. Compare the result with the document

Read the name, birth date, nationality, expiry date and secondary number shown in the report. Compare each available field with the original document supplied by the person. Record any difference in your review process and ask for supporting material where your policy requires it.

4. Connect the person to the identity record

A remote process can add a selfie and passive liveness check to establish that a live person is completing the session. Face match can compare a selfie with an available record photograph or another accepted reference image. This step gives the business evidence about the person presenting the identity.

5. Read the person’s current status document

The VerifyNow report records the identity-source result. The person’s original status document carries the work authorisation. Record the document type, number, expiry date, work endorsement, conditions and date inspected in the case file.

Which refugee or asylum document permits work?

Recognised refugee

A recognised refugee receives a certificate of recognition in Form DHA-1693. People often call it a Section 24 permit or refugee status document. Section 27(f) of the Refugees Act 130 of 1998 gives a recognised refugee the right to seek employment. Regulation 17 of the Refugees Regulations, 2018 makes the certificate valid for four years and requires the refugee to apply for renewal at least 90 days before it expires.

A refugee aged 16 or older must apply for a refugee identity card or document immediately after receiving the certificate. Regulation 18 ties the ID’s validity date to the certificate. Inspect the current certificate when recording refugee status and work rights.

Asylum seeker

An asylum seeker receives a visa under section 22 of the Refugees Act. Work authorisation appears as an endorsement on the current visa, together with any conditions. Read the original visa because regulation 12(4) requires the asylum seeker to possess it as proof of legal status. Confirm that the endorsement covers the role offered and remains valid on the intended start date.

Section 22(9) requires the employer to give Home Affairs the prescribed employment letter within 14 days after the asylum seeker starts work. Regulation 12(6) identifies Form 6 in the Refugees Regulations as the prescribed form. Section 22(10) sets a fine of up to R20,000 for failure to comply or for a fraudulent letter.

The 90-day renewal rule applies to a recognised refugee’s certificate. An asylum seeker follows the expiry date and appointments shown on the Section 22 visa. Regulation 12(8) sends an extension to the Refugee Reception Office where the application was submitted. Sections 22(12) to 22(14) govern expiry, late renewal and abandonment. An expired visa needs urgent review because compelling reasons, a recorded extension or a court order can affect the legal position.

Employer checklist

These duties cover employers of every size, including households that employ domestic workers.

1. Inspect the original document

Ask the person to present the original refugee certificate or Section 22 asylum seeker visa. Check the name, file number, photograph where present, expiry date, alterations and written conditions. Record who inspected it and when.

2. Confirm the work rule for that document

For a recognised refugee, record the current certificate and the right in section 27(f). For an asylum seeker, record the exact work endorsement and its conditions. Match those conditions to the employer and role.

3. Run the identity-source check

Enter the NIIS file number in VerifyNow. Compare every returned field with the original document. A successful report shows that the identity source found the number and returned the available identity record. Status and work authorisation remain grounded in the current original document.

4. Build the statutory record file

Section 38(2) of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002 requires a good-faith effort to establish each foreign employee’s status or citizenship. Section 38(4) requires prescribed employment records for two years after employment ends. Regulation 35 of the Immigration Regulations, 2014 lists a certified passport copy, a copy of the relevant visa or permanent residence permit, proof of the person’s role, the IRP5 or certificate of earnings, and the job description.

Refugee and asylum files should also hold a clear copy of the document inspected, the work endorsement where relevant, the VerifyNow report, the review note and renewal follow-up. Keep the original with the employee. Ask an immigration lawyer how regulation 35 applies when the person has a refugee document in place of a passport or Immigration Act visa.

5. File the asylum employment letter

When a Section 22 visa carries a work endorsement, send the prescribed Form 6 employment letter to Home Affairs within 14 days after work starts. Keep proof of submission with the case file.

6. Track the expiry date

Set an internal reminder early enough for the employee to obtain a renewed document. Regulation 17(4) sets the recognised-refugee renewal application at least 90 days before expiry. For a Section 22 visa, use the date and appointment instructions printed on the document.

7. Follow the reporting duties

Section 38(4)(b) of the Immigration Act requires an employer to report the end of a foreign employee’s employment and any breach of status to the Director-General. Keep the report and delivery proof in the employee file.

8. Use a fair process when status changes

Obtain labour and immigration advice before further work or dismissal when a document expires, a work endorsement changes or Home Affairs disputes the status. The Labour Court held in Discovery Health Ltd v CCMA that a foreign worker remains an employee with labour-law protection. An immediate termination based only on a document problem can create an unfair-dismissal dispute.

Penalties currently in force

Section 38(1) of the Immigration Act prohibits employing an illegal foreigner, a person whose status does not authorise that employment, or a person working outside the terms of that status. Section 49(3) makes knowing employment in violation of the Act an offence. A first conviction can bring a fine or imprisonment for up to one year. Later convictions carry longer imprisonment, reaching five years for a third or later conviction. Section 49(6) also makes failure to perform duties under sections 38 to 46 an offence, with a fine or imprisonment of up to five years.

Parliament lists the Employment Services Amendment Bill B16-2026 at the Introduction stage as at 3 August 2026. Proposed civil penalty figures reported during 2026 belong to that bill. This guide uses the penalties already in force.

Protect the employee’s personal information

Refugee documents contain identity and status data. POPIA requires information to be adequate and relevant under section 10, collected for a defined lawful purpose under section 13, kept under the retention rules in section 14, and secured under section 19. Limit file access, record the lawful purpose, keep the statutory records for their required period and delete or de-identify extra copies when the lawful retention period ends.

How to read common results

An identity record found result means the source located the submitted NIIS number and returned the fields available for it. Review those fields against the document and continue with any selfie or liveness step required by your process.

A record not found result asks for a careful check of the number entered. Compare it character by character with the document before running another verification.

A format error points to a NIIS number that falls outside the accepted letter and digit pattern. Correct the entry from the original document.

A source unavailable result means the identity service could not complete the request at that time. Keep the case open and retry after the service is available.

Keep the report with the review evidence

Download the full authenticated report when the check completes. Store it with access controls that suit identity data, along with the document review notes and any selfie or liveness result used for the case. The VerifyNow activity reference makes it easier to trace the lookup inside the dashboard.

Teams can start with a single dashboard check and add verification steps as the customer journey develops. VerifyNow also supports API-based identity checks for web and mobile onboarding where the service fits the approved workflow.

Run a refugee or asylum ID verification, or open the service page to review the sample report.