‘No more Home Affairs queues’
BOOKINGS: Home Affairs
The Department of Home Affairs has launched a new system called the Branch Appointment Booking System (BABS) to end long queues.
Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, Deputy Director-General for Institutional Planning & Support, Thulani Mavuso, said BABS would eliminate some of the frustrations the public has when at Home Affairs.
He said: “We want to protect people from waking up at four, five in the morning to come to our offices because they want to stand in those long queues.
“But also, we have been frustrated by people who come into the office and queue in order to sell the slots to the public. We are trying to curb that particular problem.”
Mavuso stressed that BABS is only applicable to ID and passport applications.
“They are high-volume products that are in demand.
Booking a timeslot allows clients to visit a Home Affairs office to process their application.
Applicants are encouraged to use the online booking system because in the near future, selected Home Affairs branches will process smart ID and passport applications only for clients who have booked an appointment through BABS.
Pre-booked clients will be serviced at dedicated counters.
The offices that will offer the BABS service locally are Cape Town - Barrack Street, Bellville, Paarl, Wynberg and Khayelitsha.