JOHANNESBURG — South Africa said it will deport seven Kenyan nationals after officials arrested them during a Home Affairs operation Tuesday targeting illegal work at a U.S. refugee application center in the country. Authorities said the detentions reflect a wider crackdown on visa abuse and have triggered diplomatic friction because the site was processing applications for a contentious U.S. refugee program aimed at resettling white Afrikaners from South Africa, Dec. 17, 2025.
In a media statement posted on South Africa’s government website, the Department of Home Affairs said the Kenyan nationals entered South Africa on tourist visas and then took up work at a facility processing U.S.-bound refugee applications. The department said earlier visa applications for Kenyan nationals to do the same work legally had been declined, and the seven were arrested, issued deportation orders and barred from reentering South Africa for five years.
Home Affairs said the raid followed procedures used as it has increased deportations in recent months and that the operation was not carried out at a diplomatic site. Officials also said no U.S. personnel were arrested and no prospective applicants were harassed during the operation.
South Africa to deport 7 Kenyans: what officials say happened
Officials said the case escalated beyond an immigration violation because “foreign officials” were present while the Kenyan nationals were allegedly working without authorization. “The presence of foreign officials apparently coordinating with undocumented workers naturally raises serious questions about intent and diplomatic protocol,” Home Affairs said.
Reuters reported that the Kenyans were assisting with U.S. refugee application processing connected to a Trump administration plan intended to bring thousands of white South Africans to the United States. The news agency said processing in South Africa is being handled by Amerikaners — a group led by white South Africans — and RSC Africa, a Kenya-based refugee support center operated by Church World Service.
The Associated Press reported that the processing center was in Johannesburg and that it handled applications by white South Africans seeking refugee status under the new U.S. program. South Africa’s government has rejected claims that white South Africans face persecution but says it will not stop them from applying for relocation under the U.S. plan.
Eyewitness News reported that Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said the seven Kenyan nationals were found working despite having entered South Africa on tourist visas, and that the operation formed part of a broader intensification of deportations.
Diplomatic fallout tied to the U.S. refugee program
Home Affairs said South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation has begun formal engagements with the United States and Kenya to resolve the matter. A U.S. State Department spokesperson, quoted by CNN, said “interfering in our refugee operations is unacceptable” and that Washington would seek immediate clarification.
Background: the dispute has simmered for years
While the arrests centered on immigration law and visa conditions, the U.S. refugee program for Afrikaners sits within a longer political debate in the United States over South Africa’s land reform, crime and the status of white South Africans. Key moments include:
Aug. 23, 2018: President Donald Trump ordered his administration to examine allegations involving South African land policy and attacks on farmers, prompting criticism from South African officials, according to The Guardian.
May 12, 2025: The first group of Afrikaners arrived in the United States under a redrawn refugee process that drew scrutiny from resettlement agencies, in an NPR report republished by VPM.
Oct. 31, 2025: South Africa’s foreign ministry said the U.S. “special refugee programme” rests on a factually inaccurate premise and warned against conflating voluntary migration with refugee asylum in a statement.
For now, Home Affairs says the seven Kenyan nationals will be deported and prohibited from returning for five years, while diplomatic talks continue over the U.S.-linked processing operation.
