Illegal migration: Ireland deports 42 South Africans

Ireland has deported 42 South African nationals who were living in the country illegally, flying them to Johannesburg at an initial cost of €735,000 (about $845,000).

According to The Irish Times, the deportees, nine men, 18 women, and 15 children, left Dublin Airport on a chartered flight on Thursday and arrived in South Africa on Friday morning. The Irish Times reports that this was Ireland’s fourth large-scale deportation charter flight this year.

The Garda National Immigration Bureau carried out the removals under deportation orders, which are issued to individuals found to be living illegally in the State who decline the option of voluntary return.

Two of those deported had previous criminal convictions in Ireland, authorities said.

South Africa is officially classified as a safe country of origin under Irish law, meaning South African citizens can only secure international asylum by providing documentary evidence of a direct threat to their safety at home.

Irish Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan stressed that most South Africans living in Ireland do so legally, but said adherence to immigration rules remains a top priority.

“Our immigration system must be rules-based and robust,” O’Callaghan was quoted as saying. “The enforcement aspects of our laws, including deportation orders, are an essential requirement for the system to work effectively and to ensure there is public confidence in the application of our legislation in this area.”

O’Callaghan said the €735,000 figure was provisional, noting that the total cost of Thursday’s operation would only be confirmed once invoicing is complete.

He said the flight was Ireland’s fourth deportation charter of 2026, following three earlier operations that removed 130 people from the country, among them 67 EU citizens deported on criminality grounds.