The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has confirmed that 49 Afrikaners who left South Africa for the United States under a new refugee programme initiated by US President Donald Trump will retain their South African citizenship.
First batch of Afrikaners move to the US as refugees
This announcement follows the departure of the group on a private charter flight on Sunday, 11 May 2025.
The group, which includes families and children, was welcomed in Washington as part of a controversial refugee relocation scheme unveiled by the Trump administration in February.
According to DIRCO, these individuals are not stripped of their South African nationality simply because they left the country, regardless of the reasons or their refugee status.
DIRCO spokesperson Crispin Phiri explained that South Africa respects the rights of its citizens to travel and settle abroad.
“Section 21(2) of the Constitution grants South Africans the right to leave the Republic,” Phiri said, adding that relocating does not automatically revoke citizenship.
The Trump administration’s move to offer Afrikaners refugee status stems from claims of racial discrimination in South Africa, particularly under the government’s land reform programme, which allows expropriation of land without compensation under certain conditions.
Critics of the policy, including Trump and local rights group AfriForum, argue that Afrikaners, a white minority in South Africa, face systemic marginalisation.
However, the South African government strongly rejects these claims. In a media statement released on 9 May, DIRCO said:
“Allegations of discrimination are unfounded. Police statistics do not support claims that white farmers are being singled out in farm-related crimes. South Africa remains committed to protecting all citizens equally under the law.”
The department also stated that the notion of Afrikaners fleeing South Africa as “refugees” is misleading. Under international law, refugee status is typically granted to people facing persecution due to race, religion, or political opinion.
DIRCO argues that while people may claim discrimination, these conditions do not meet the legal threshold for persecution as defined in international refugee law.
Despite its criticism of the US decision, South Africa has not attempted to block the migration of these individuals. Instead, it has requested clarity from the US on their legal status — whether they were processed as refugees, asylum seekers, or ordinary immigrants — and whether proper vetting was done to ensure none of the migrants are fleeing unresolved legal matters in South Africa.
DIRCO’s Deputy Minister Alvin Botes also raised the issue in a diplomatic engagement with the US Deputy Secretary of State, Christopher Landau, stressing the need for transparent and respectful dialogue between the two nations.
While the US has yet to offer detailed clarification, the embassy in Pretoria previously confirmed that it is actively processing and interviewing Afrikaner applicants under the terms of President Trump’s executive order.
For now, the South African government continues to monitor developments while reaffirming its stance on equality and constitutional protections for all its citizens.
