Thousands of Zimbabweans fled the political violence that followed the 2008 election in their country and the collapse of the economy.
They were given permission to stay in South Africa - but that has been withdrawn and more than a million people will need to apply for a residents permit before the deadline.
Al Jazeera's Tania Page reports from Johannesburg in South Africa.
Content on this website is for general information purposes only. Your comments are provided by your own free will and you take sole responsibility for any direct or indirect liability. You hereby provide us with an irrevocable, unlimited, and global license for no consideration to use, reuse, delete or publish comments, in accordance with Community Rules & Guidelines and Terms and Conditions.