Scalabrini Centre, Cape Town v Minister of Home Affairs and Others

The Director-General of the Department of Home Affairs decided on 31 January 2014 to close the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office permanently in terms of s 8(1) of the Refugees Act 130 of 1998. This followed a history of operational difficulties, litigation relating to zoning and nuisance at various premises, and earlier attempts to close the office that had been set aside by courts. After consultations with interested parties in late 2013—where all refugee advocacy organisations opposed closure—the Director-General nonetheless resolved to close the office, limiting asylum applications in Cape Town and requiring new applicants to apply at offices in Musina, Pretoria or Durban. The appellants, including refugee rights organisations and affected individuals, challenged the decision as irrational, unlawful and unconstitutional.

The appeal was upheld with costs. The decision of the Director-General to close the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office was declared unlawful, reviewed and set aside. The first to third respondents were ordered to reopen and maintain a fully functional refugee reception office in or around the Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality by 31 March 2018, with ongoing reporting obligations imposed on the Director-General.

This case is a leading authority on the application of the constitutional principle of legality to executive decisions affecting asylum seekers. It affirms that even high-level policy decisions under the Refugees Act must be rationally connected to statutory purposes and international obligations. The judgment reinforces refugee protection, access to asylum procedures, and limits the state’s ability to manage migration through indirect deterrence.