Home Affairs

[Gonzy]

Hows this. 8 months ago I applied for my family to get unabridged birth certificates directly through Home Affairs, at the stand at the Rand Show.. well... my kids received theirs 3 weeks later, my wife received hers 2 days ago and mine: just found out the my mom is married to herself and my dad is also married to himself

im flippin angry and could bite the head off a black mumba..

Their incompentancy is holding my whole visa process up and Im sitting in limbo as I get shunted from pilar to post and from louce to another flippin louce.

Does anyone have a contact number of someone in this damn dept. who is senior,knows what they are doing, speaks and understands english,

any help will be greatly apprec.

many thanks

[Dreamcatcher]

Hi,

Sorry to hear about your dilemma, and sorry I cannot really help.

I will be going to have much of the same problem when we apply for PR. We tried to apply for these birth certificates before we left SA. Everyone got one except me. I have no father... and my mother never existed! She is just nowhere to be found on the population register! So here I am, an alien I suppose.

Good luck on your quest!

Greetings,

Dreamy

[Ajay]

What a debacle!

I applied for unabridged birth certificates for my sons before I left and managed to find someone very helpful in the department in Johannesburg (by the old traffic department). If my memory sersves, her name was Jackie and she was the supervisor - a very helpful lady. They's told me that I would have to wait 6 months, and she got it to me in 3 weeks. I've lost her number unfortunatley, but if you just call the department and ask for her, you might get lucky.

On that issue though, I'm surprised that you need the birth certificates for you and your wife as well - it's normally only a requirement for kids under 18?

Good luck

Ajay

[Gonzy]

What a debacle!

I applied for unabridged birth certificates for my sons before I left and managed to find someone very helpful in the department in Johannesburg (by the old traffic department). If my memory sersves, her name was Jackie and she was the supervisor - a very helpful lady. They's told me that I would have to wait 6 months, and she got it to me in 3 weeks. I've lost her number unfortunatley, but if you just call the department and ask for her, you might get lucky.

On that issue though, I'm surprised that you need the birth certificates for you and your wife as well - it's normally only a requirement for kids under 18?

Good luck

Ajay

Hi all,

thanks for replies..

will try and trace her thanks vm

bout the birth certificates, Hitchcock and Ass asked for them and ive been stressing to get them... Will contact them in Sydney today and find out

thankss again

[Mara]

I have heard people talking about "Bunnyhop" who will get you the certificates, quickly, but at a price. I have no idea where they are, perhaps they are in the telephone directory?

I found the details for you, here they are, it was posted by Marius

There is a very good place called Bunnyhop documents, based in Pinetown that do all sorts of home affairs stuff at reasonable rates and very good fast service. I used them for unabridged certs, we had it is 3 weeks, all done by e-mail and fax and delivered to my house in Australia, no worries .Their details:

Haydee Miles ( there are several other very good ladies )

Registered Immigration Practitioner (AIPSA 2004/02/0166)

Bunny Hop Documents

P.O Box 639New Germany3620

Tel: (031) 705-1189

Fax: (031) 705-1036

Mobile: 082 923 5599

www.bunnyhop.co.za

Good luck!

Mara

[Sam]

and mine: just found out the my mom is married to herself and my dad is also married to himself

Absolutely shocking!

I hope you get it sorted out soon. I've also heard that Bunnyhop is good and competent at sorting it out with home affairs.

[Sulona]

Hi,

sorry I can't help with someone at Home Affairs but in my search for someone to assist me with applications for unabridged certificates I got the number for Caroline Gerber. 083 285 3183, her fee is very reasonable compared to other people I contacted and if everything goes well she will have the certificates in 10 days time. You can also email her at c_gerber@polka.co.za

Sulona

[W+R]

I read a post on this forum with the names of two people at the "head office". We applied for our unabridged birth certificates about 6 weeks ago at Randburg Home Affairs and yesterday I phoned these "head office" people to find out how things are going.

I was able to then get their direct numbers which are:

Obert: 012 810 8380

Frans: 012 810 6468

I spoke to Obert and he asked me my ID number. He typed it into his computer and was immediately able to tell me that it has been issued and is ready to be collected and Randburg home affairs. I haven't gone there to see if it is all in order.

These guys are definitely sitting at a computer with the right information on it so it may be worthwhile giving them a call.

I hope this helps

Good luck!

Werner

[Riekie]

Ours took 3 applications and more than 18 months and still, my father's D.O.B is : "26 years" and my mother's D.O.B is: "28 Years" - none of this has any relevance to either their date of birth or their age. It's been "checked & authorised" by Mr CL Mabuye... I give up.....

[Guest Bronwyn]

Gonzy I am still too traumatised by Home Affairs to even tell you my story . Do it the African way.

1) Call Arno on 082 524 9909.

2) He will tell you what he needs, such as date & place of birth. Fax it to him.

3) Pay the money into his Std Bank account online. If I remember correctly he charges +-R350 for an unabridged birth certificate.

4) Wait up to 2 weeks.

5) He brings it to your house. He is based in Pretoria, so you might have to meet him somewhere.

End of story.

He did mine, and now he is doing my stepson's 'Vault-Copy' Birth Certificate for his British Passport. The British Embassy no longer accepts Unabridged Birth Certificates because of corruption at Home Affarirs. This decision was taken 3 months back and is seriously delaying our plans...

You can trust Arno & pay him online first. He's a professional, he'll get the job done.

Bronwyn

Edited November 4, 2006 by Bronwyn

[Gonzy]

Hi all,

Thank you all for the information and I will use each and every bit of info

later

Gonzy

[W+R]

We got our unabridged birth certificates at Randburg Home Affairs last week without any problem.

It took much less time (6 weeks) than they said too (8 to 12 weeks). What a pleasant surprise, there weren't even any mistakes on them or anything wrong at all. I remember when I got my passport through Randburg Home Affairs there were no problems either and everything went smoothly.

It really bothers me that i am surprised each time something actually works like it should when it comes to dealing with the S-African goverment officials!!

But luckily we are yet another step closer to AUS !

[sa2auz]

Hi there

I used Bunnyhop to get my unabridged marriage certificate, I emailed them the details and within a week I had it in Australia. Does anyone have experience with passsports. The way it is supposed to work is that I send the forms that I have received from the High Commission back to the High Commission in Canberra with my orginal passport and my fingerprints taken at a Police Station and wait 6 - 8 months. Does anyone have experience with doing it any other way when you are not in SA?

As far as the unabridged certicates go I believe that for a 457 it is only children that need a unabridged and for PR all applicants and one heard any thing different on that one?

[Dedrei]

Hey Sa2auz

I am actually at this moment busy with my new app for passport. Apparently you just send a certified copy of your passport with so long and then they let you know if your passport has arrived and then you post it to them. Have you requested docs from High Commision yet for application for passport? They'll post it to you.

Then Bunnyhop said that they can try and keep tabs on the progress of it and see if they can speed it a long, with a price.

[sa2auz]

Hi there

Yip got the forms finally from Canberra and now need to fill them in, all the questions about parents and citizenship is a pain in the butt but I think I am sorted now. Think I will dash off and get the photos now, while I am in a motivated can do mood. Are you sure you can just send off a certified copy? Also when you send your passport does it just go to Canberra or do they actually send it to SA? Am wanting to sort out PR also so need to move my ass. Also need to get the fingerprints done. Have you submitted yours yet?

S

Hey Sa2auz

I am actually at this moment busy with my new app for passport. Apparently you just send a certified copy of your passport with so long and then they let you know if your passport has arrived and then you post it to them. Have you requested docs from High Commision yet for application for passport? They'll post it to you.

Then Bunnyhop said that they can try and keep tabs on the progress of it and see if they can speed it a long, with a price.

[Dedrei]

I am also busy with the photos, getting my third ones taken today. THey have to be the following size

Length - 45mm

Width - 35mm

From your chin to the top of your hair shall not be smaller than 22mm and not larger than 25mm.

Please tell the people taking the photos that you dont want the humungus photos they use for aussie passports but the size as above.

Also will be going for fingerprints probably today. Some where on the forms, think was yellow one, it said that you can send a certified copy and then send your passport to them once your new passport has been issued. I need to move my ass as well, as I need to change my surname and we will be applying for PR in Feb, so I'll probably have to send DIMIA a letter thingy to notify them of the changes once it happens and then also to get the 457 visa in the new passport.

[kaztayli]

I am also busy with the photos, getting my third ones taken today. THey have to be the following size

Length - 45mm

Width - 35mm

From your chin to the top of your hair shall not be smaller than 22mm and not larger than 25mm.

Please tell the people taking the photos that you dont want the humungus photos they use for aussie passports but the size as above.

Also will be going for fingerprints probably today. Some where on the forms, think was yellow one, it said that you can send a certified copy and then send your passport to them once your new passport has been issued. I need to move my ass as well, as I need to change my surname and we will be applying for PR in Feb, so I'll probably have to send DIMIA a letter thingy to notify them of the changes once it happens and then also to get the 457 visa in the new passport.

Sorry to laugh but it took us 18 months to get my daughter's unabridged birth certificate. They had no excuse - just that it was coming. In the end I landed up throwing a major temper tantrum in the office of a Mr Ahmed who headed up Home Affairs in Cape Town and I had the certificate withing 20 mins (go figure)

My best though is that after 3 years of marriage - we discovered (when applying for our full marriage certificate) that we weren't married according to Home Affairs. We had to track our minister down (he had moved) and he had to track his marriage license book down (3 years later) to prove to the government that we were in fact married. They wouldn't accept our copy of our marriage certificate.

All in all it took me 7 years to get all our paperwork together from the government (and now I have to get some updated apparently!)

[Dedrei]

Well my passport application is off to Canberra via Express post, just incase.