The following are some of the important laws to do with land, tenure and housing that the government has passed since 1994:

Interim Protection of Informal Land Rights Act (No 31 of 1996) (IPILRA)

This Act aims to protect people with insecure tenure from losing their rights to land while land reform is being introduced. The Communal Land Rights Act of 2004 will add to the IPILRA.

Communal Property Associations Act (No 28 of 1996)

This Act enables communities or groups to acquire, hold and manage property under a written constitution.

Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act (No 3 of 1996)

This Act protects the rights of labour tenants and enables them to acquire permanent land to live and work on.

Extension of Security of Tenure Act(NO 62 OF 1997) (ESTA)

This Act gives people who lived on someone else’s land on or before 4 February 1997 with permission from the owner, a secure legal right to carry on living on and using that land. It specifies clearly what the landlord must do before he or she can evict a tenant.

(See: Extension of Security of Tenure Act [ESTA])

Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act (No 19 of 1998) (PIE)

This Act sets out how land can be orderly occupied. It explains when unlawful occupiers can be evicted and how to prohibit unlawful eviction. This Act repeals the Prevention of Illegal Squatting Act of 1951. An amendment has been proposed to PIE and a draft has been published. This still has to be tabled in parliament.

(See PIE)

The Transformation of Certain Rural Areas Act (No 94 of 1998)

This Act aims to allow for the transfer of 1.7 million hectares of land to the communities consisting of 70 000 people in the former ‘coloured reserves’ in the Western Cape, Northern Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State.