Andrew Veitch, a South African expatriate who fled South Africa after being held at gunpoint in his car, now perceives greater threats within the United States than in South Africa, according to his statements. He relocated to California in 2003 but plans to return to South Africa this year, citing mass shootings in public spaces and violence by US immigration officers as reasons for his unease. Thousands of white South Africans are making a similar journey back to South Africa, with official statistics from 2022 indicating nearly 15,000 white South Africans returned that year.
Many white South Africans emigrated after the end of white minority rule in 1994, often citing crime and employment difficulties, but a significant number are now reversing course. Andrew Veitch is one of 12,000 individuals who have verified their citizenship status through an online portal launched by the South African government last November. Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber noted that 1,000 people have already reclaimed their citizenship and anticipates the number will grow substantially.
People are being shot in broad daylight. American citizens are being shot and killed.
Recruitment agencies assisting expatriates report a surge in inquiries from South Africans wanting to return, with common motivations including a desire to be closer to family, lower living costs, and political instability abroad. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is expanding its refugee programme for white South Africans, specifically targeting Afrikaners, with approximately 3,500 South Africans having entered the United States as refugees since the programme's inception in May 2025. Applicants for the refugee programme have cited racially motivated crime and employment equity laws as reasons for seeking refuge.
Donald Trump has suggested the white minority in South Africa faces persecution from the country's Black majority government, but Pretoria maintains there is no evidence of discrimination or persecution against white citizens in South Africa. The long-term impact of the returning white South Africans on South Africa's economy and social dynamics remains to be seen.
I don't want to live in a place like this.
There is definitely a sense of optimism for South Africans abroad.