Frequently Asked Questions

All applications for expungement of criminal records in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977, are to be submitted to the Director General: Department of Justice and Constitutional Development as prescribed in Part I of the relevant application form.

You will only be able to apply for a Criminal Record expungement if:

  1. A period of 10 years has passed after the date of the conviction for that offence, and there has been no subsequent conviction(s)`
  2. You have not been convicted and sentenced to a period of imprisonment without the option of a fine during those 10 years.
  3. You were sentenced to the following sentence:
    1. Minor crimes
    2. Politically motivated crimes
  4. You’re convicted of an offence based on race
  5. Convictions of crimes of a serious nature, such as murder, rape and other sexual offences, armed robbery, and assault with the intention to do serious bodily harm, do not qualify for criminal record expungement
  6. When the sentence was postponed, or the person was cautioned and discharged.
  7. You were given the option of paying a fine (R20,000 or less)
  8. You were advised that paying a fine would not result in a criminal record, but have subsequently discovered the existence of your criminal record
  9. When the sentence of imprisonment was suspended wholly.
  10. When the proof is provided that a person’s name has been removed from the National Register of Sex Offenders or the National Child Protection Register, if relevant.

You will not qualify if:

  1. When a period of 10 years has not lapsed after the date of the conviction.
  2. When a person was sentenced to direct imprisonment.
  3. Serious cases where the sentence is one of imprisonment without the option of a fine for example robbery, rape, murder and assault with the intention to do grievous bodily harm.
  4. When a fine of more than R20 000 was imposed.
  5. If you were convicted of a sexual offence against a child or a mentally disabled person.
  6. If your name is included in the National Register for sex offenders or the National Child Protection Register. You may however qualify if your name has been removed from the National Register
  7. If you were imprisoned for an offence, which was not a political offence and or based on race
Apostille (also known as notarial and authentication) is the term given to the authentication of the seals and signatures of officials on public documents. In order to be valid for international use, birth certificates, notarial, court orders and any other document issued by a public authority must be apostilled.
Now that you have applied for your visa to UAE, and waiting for your application to be processed, please take note of the following:
  • Visas usually take 4 working days to process, but can take up to 7 working days as per UAE immigration laws.
  • You’ll be told by email when your application has been decided.
  • Once your application has been approved you will be granted an electronic visa (or eVisa). This means you will not have a physical visa label in your passport.
  • You will receive via email your visa approval letter will include your visa details.
  • You should print your eVisa letter, keep it in a safe place, and carry it with you when you travel.
When a person is endorsed as wanted, a certificate will not be issued until the wanted status is removed from the person’s name.
Apostilles are needed when requiring stamped documents for use in countries that are parties to the Hague Apostille Convention. Any country not appearing on this list is not a signatory and as such documents cannot be apostilled for that country and will instead have to be authenticated/attested.
The majority of documents that are required to be attested can only be attested in Pretoria as this is where DIRCO (The Department of International Relations and Cooperation a.k.a Foreign Affairs) is located. In order for documents to be attested they have to go to one or more of the following places:
  • Notary Public and the High Court
  • Departments of Basic and Higher Education as well as Umalusi
  • HPCSA (Health Professions Council of South Africa)
  • DIRCO
  • The Relevant Embassy / Consulate
You may attest any original educational qualification, and unabridged birth, marriage, and death certificates.
The South African Immigration Act’s requires all minors travelling into and out of South Africa be in possession of an Unabridged Birth Certificate, including South African citizens and travellers who are not South African citizens. Whether travelling minors are accompanied by a parent or guardian it is the responsibility of passengers to ensure their children have the correct documents or stand the risk of being denied boarding. In all cases, an Unabridged Birth Certificate is required for minors departing and arriving in South Africa ... they are not allowed to travel without it. The law is strictly enforced by airlines and immigration officials across the board. If the child was not born in South Africa, and if the original unabridged birth certificate is not written in English, then a sworn English translation performed by an accredited authority in the minor’s country of origin must be provided.  
Let’s be honest, with all the work that goes into preparing for your trip the last thing you want, is to stress about your Visa! We make Visa's Easy We offer a superior, comprehensive service, to ensure that visas are acquired timeously and in the shortest time possible. We achieve this by having offices close to all Consulates and Embassies within South Africa, offering a door-to-door delivery service. Our day-to-day operations are meticulously planned & tightly controlled, and we invite you to try out our services & experience true service satisfaction.
Here at Visa Logistics, we have formed strong bonds with all embassies in South Africa and we specialise in facilitating documents within these embassies. In our years of dealing with these particular embassies, we have grown to understand their requirements and regulations. We pride ourselves in producing services in the fastest time possible. We understand the deadlines of life and the strenuous admin that comes with it. That’s why we offer full services of collecting your documents locally, facilitating, and delivering them back to your doorstep.