The Constitutional Court has ruled that procedural delays cannot be used to reject asylum applications, ensuring all claims are evaluated on their merits and protecting vulnerable children from deportation.

A landmark Constitutional Court judgment will ensure that asylum seekers and their children are no longer barred from lodging an asylum application or excluded from refugee status altogether because of procedural failures.

The judgment, handed down by Justice Steven Majiedt on Tuesday, 7 July, found that the current procedure outlined under the Refugees Act "does not pass constitutional muster". Majiedt ruled that the Department of Home Affairs could not deny asylum seekers refugee status on the basis of procedural non-compliance and must consider applications on their merits.

The Act stipulated that asylum seekers must enter South Africa through a designated port of entry, where they will receive an asylum transit visa, valid for five days. Within that period, they must present themselves at one of the five designated Refugee Reception Offices (RROs).

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If applicants failed to meet these conditions, they had to provide immigration officers with a valid reason and show "good cause" for lacking the required visa. If the officer was unsatisfied with the explanation, they could issue an adverse immigration status, preventing the individual from lodging an application or leading to an outright denial.

Furthermore, a child's legal status was tied directly to that of their parents....