New Home Affairs measures to curb ID fraud

The new measures form part of a broader effort to combat identity fraud.

The department is requesting that individuals in possession of blocked IDs submit written reasons explaining why their identity documents should not be cancelled.

 A 30-day period has been provided for these submissions.

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber emphasised that this initiative is designed to address both the decades-old issue of wrongfully blocked IDs, and the reduction of fraudulent documents in circulation.

"The submissions must be sent to [email protected],” said Schreiber.

The department will also undertake a sustained social media advertising campaign to ensure the public has the opportunity to make representations.”

"Some of the IDs were originally blocked as far back as 2005 due to various reasons, such as the biometric system flagging them as duplicates, being held by illegal immigrants, or because the ID holder had passed away. 

“By providing the public with the opportunity to present their case, the Department aims to end the inconvenience caused to legitimate ID holders while cancelling IDs held by unauthorized persons," he added.

Schreiber said the measure complies with a court order issued earlier this year, which required the department to undertake a fair administrative process to differentiate between wrongfully blocked IDs and those that represent genuine security threats.

“I encourage members of the public to use this opportunity to ensure that we conduct a just and equitable process to unblock IDs that have been wrongfully blocked. 

“At the same time, the gazetting of these decisive measures underscores our commitment to clamp down on fraud and to resolve longstanding challenges while upholding the rule of law urgently," he added.

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