Why South Africa’s refugee centres are under pressure after the asylum ruling

South Africa’s five refugee reception centres are feeling the strain after a Constitutional Court ruling changed the way some foreign nationals can access the asylum process. According to Newsroom ZA, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration confirmed on Thursday, 8 October 2026, that Home Affairs facilities had been overwhelmed by the number of people seeking help.

The pressure follows a judgment handed down on 7 July 2026, when the Constitutional Court ruled that certain parts of the Refugees Act were unconstitutional. In practical terms, the ruling removed procedural barriers that had stopped some people from applying for asylum if they had entered South Africa unlawfully or did not have specific documentation. Once that decision was made, Home Affairs instructed refugee reception centres to accept applications in line with the court’s ruling.

Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi said the changes had placed pressure on facilities that were not ready for the higher demand. The centres affected are in Gqeberha, eThekwini, Epping, Tshwane and Musina. These are the country’s designated refugee reception centres, which means the surge is being concentrated in a few specific places rather than across every Home Affairs branch.

Newsroom ZA reports that the government has also tried to calm fears around what the ruling actually means. Officials have rejected claims that the judgment automatically gives foreign nationals refugee status or permanent residence. Applicants still have to go through the formal refugee determination process, and claims that do not meet legal requirements can still be refused, including claims found to be fraudulent or unfounded.

Home Affairs also confirmed on 7 October that it was implementing the Constitutional Court judgment because it was legally required to do so, not because it had chosen a new policy direction on its own. That matters because the ruling has prompted public confusion, and authorities have warned against misinformation about the decision and its impact on immigration enforcement.

To deal with the backlog and congestion, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration has announced a series of measures aimed at strengthening asylum processing and improving security checks. These include increasing administrative capacity, improving biometric verification and speeding up decisions on applications. In plain terms, the state is trying to process people faster while also checking claims more carefully.

The government is also considering extending Special Investigating Unit investigations to refugee reception centres in order to address fraudulent asylum documentation. That suggests a parallel focus on both speed and integrity: more resources to handle the volume, but also tighter scrutiny where abuse is suspected.

Officials have meanwhile stressed that ordinary Home Affairs services remain available. The pressure is concentrated at the five refugee reception centres, not all Home Affairs offices. The government says it will continue carrying out the court ruling while trying to ease the load on the immigration system.

For South Africans following the story, the key point is that the ruling changed access to the asylum process, not the final outcome of any individual application. Newsroom ZA’s report shows a system under operational pressure, with government now trying to balance legal compliance, processing capacity and document security at the same time.