Home Affairs Minister Dr Leon Schreiber said outdated manual processes had created opportunities for criminal syndicates to exploit the system and obtain South African passports fraudulently.
Foreign Nationals
1Min
South Africa
Two former Home Affairs officials arrested in R100,000 passport fraud syndicate
Two former Home Affairs officials have been arrested for their alleged links to a syndicate that fraudulently issued South African passports to foreign nationals for up to R100,000 each. The department says digital reforms are helping close loopholes previously exploited by criminals.
The Department of Home Affairs has welcomed the arrest of two former officials allegedly linked to a syndicate that fraudulently issued South African passports to foreign nationals in exchange for up to R100,000 each.
The arrests follow a joint investigation by the department’s Counter Corruption Unit and the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks, which uncovered the syndicate in 2022.
According to Home Affairs, the officials allegedly exploited weaknesses in an outdated manual system through a fraudulent method known as “photo swapping”.
The method involved using the identity details of legitimate South African citizens to obtain passports bearing photographs of foreign nationals.
Home Affairs Minister Dr Leon Schreiber said outdated manual processes had created opportunities for criminal syndicates to exploit the system and obtain South African passports fraudulently.
He said the department’s digital transformation programme was helping close these loopholes through secure biometric verification and automated processes designed to reduce human interference.
“These reforms are not simply about making Home Affairs faster and more convenient. They are about fundamentally changing how the department operates so that fraud and corruption are prevented by design, rather than detected only after the damage has been done,” Schreiber said.
The department said biometric verification now links applicants to their identities throughout the application process, including when photographs are captured, preventing criminals from substituting photographs to obtain passports fraudulently.
The same digital approach also supports the department’s partnerships with banks to expand access to Smart ID cards through secure, integrated systems.
Home Affairs said automating identity verification and reducing human discretion were key measures in eliminating opportunities for corruption.
Since the beginning of the seventh administration, 98 Home Affairs officials have been dismissed and 42 arrested as part of the department’s ongoing crackdown on corruption.
Schreiber commended the department’s Counter Corruption Unit and the Hawks for their continued efforts to investigate and root out corruption.
