South Africa’s Border Management Authority (BMA) has introduced a new set of high-security passport stamps across all ports of entry to clamp down on corruption, forgery and unauthorised migration.
Announced on Sunday by BMA commissioner Michael Masiapato at a media briefing in Pretoria, the revamped stamps aim to end the widespread abuse of the previous system, which has long been exploited by syndicates and corrupt officials.
“These new stamps were designed in collaboration with Government Printing Works using top-level security features, including the BMA logo, to prevent tampering and forgery,” said Masiapato.
“We’ve assigned each immigration officer a uniquely numbered stamp so any misuse can be traced directly back to them.”
The commissioner confirmed the old stamps were removed as the new ones were rolled out. While the current focus is on immigration stamps, he said work has already begun to redesign stamps for other border functions like agriculture, health, and environment.
He reminded travellers to ensure their passports are properly processed at official ports of entry or risk being refused entry, deported, or even arrested.
During the first quarter of the 2025/26 financial year — from April to June — the BMA intercepted 9,954 individuals attempting to cross the border illegally. Of those, 5,826 were undocumented, 2,127 were deemed inadmissible, and 2,001 were classified as undesirables, mostly from Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
Border guards also handed over 15 high-powered suspected stolen vehicles to the SAPS and seized counterfeit goods worth over R1 million. Additionally, 14 passports with fake immigration stamps were confiscated.
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Since July 2022, the BMA has blocked nearly half a million illegal entry attempts and intercepted 349 vehicles targeted by smuggling syndicates.
The quarterly report was reviewed by the Border Technical Committee and the Inter-Ministerial Consultative Committee led by Home Affairs Minister Dr Leon Schreiber.
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