Sinini Moyo, 38, who works as a nanny in Johannesburg, walks home in fear of being robbed on payday.
Her employer is forced to pay her in cash because her bank account was frozen after her Zimbabwe exemption permit was not processed by the Department of Home Affairs, despite her applying six months ago.
The proof of application, which the department says should be used as an official document along with a disclaimer on its website, has faded illegibly and the bank will not accept it.
Meanwhile the department and its partner, VFS Global, have collected R19-million in visa fees from Zimbabweans who applied for work and residence permits.
The renewal document followed the 2015 Zimbabwean special dispensation visa given to Zimbabweans living in South Africa, which expired in December. Despite applicants paying the R1,090 permit fee and completing all documentation in November, there has been no response from the department to two-thirds of the applications.Department spokesman Mayihlome Tshwete confirmed the website did state that the process could take eight weeks, but this depended on staff capacity.
"Of the 180,188 who applied, approximately 60,000 permits have been issued already. The others are in process. Yes, the website says eight weeks, but due to the lack of capacity we have been given until October 31 to complete the project," he said.
VFS Global had completed its task of collecting the data, the department and VFS confirmed this week. The delay is with home affairs, which has to process the data.
Tshwete said the disclaimer on the website and the printed receipt could be used as proof of application and Zimbabweans could "carry on with life as normal" until the permits were processed.
But Karen Ndlovu, another frustrated domestic worker, said the proof of application document was "like a Pick n Pay till slip - you can't walk around with it as proof of your residence".
Moyo said: "After queueing for 12 hours, and checking every day, there is nothing. Now the bank says I must go back [to VFS in Midrand where applications were processed] and get a new receipt. The last time, it took a few weeks and we were OK."The banking problem means she cannot send her children pocket money for school in Bulawayo and makes her worry about being deported or robbed of her cash.
Marilyn Budow, of the refugee and migrant rights programme at Lawyers for Human Rights, said it was unacceptable that the applicants, "many of whom are low-income earners, are charged for these services. Then the delays pose an ... additional cost ... It is a source for inquiry and concern."
The department's delay "leaves the applicants undocumented and, in effect, illegally residing or working in South Africa. This is a result of what can only be poor management planning."
Budow said she was representing other immigrants and refugees who had had their employment contracts terminated as they had no valid visa. "They would also face challenges at hospitals, which require lawful documentation."
Ndlovu said she had had no response from home affairs and was not aware of the disclaimer on the website. "I have to go to the bank every other month because I get a message that they will freeze my account. I am using the receipt every month to unfreeze [it]. The service is very, very poor."..