Privacy Policy (POPIA)

Last updated: 29 September 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how ZD Solutions (Pty) Ltd, operating ZD Visa ("we", "us", "our"), collects, uses, stores, and protects your personal information in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA).

1. Information We Collect

We collect personal information you provide directly to us, including:

• Contact details (name, phone number, email address)
• Identity information (passport details, date of birth, nationality)
• Travel information (flight bookings, accommodation bookings, itinerary)
• Financial and employment information relevant to your visa application (e.g. bank statements, employment letters) that you choose to upload
• Documents you upload, including photos of your passport, supporting documents, and a passport-style photograph where required by the destination's visa requirements
• Communication records (WhatsApp messages, emails) between you and us

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information to:

• Prepare, check, and submit your visa application documents
• Pre-fill application fields using optical character recognition (OCR) of documents you upload, which you and our staff always review before anything is used
• Communicate with you about your application via WhatsApp, email, or SMS
• Process payment for our services
• Calculate and administer referral discounts and agency commissions, where applicable
• Comply with our legal and regulatory obligations

3. Photo Verification — What We Do and Do Not Do

3.1. Where a destination requires a passport-style photograph, our system performs basic, automated checks to confirm a photo contains a clearly visible, centred face and meets basic technical requirements (such as background and framing) commonly required by visa authorities.

3.2. This is face detection only — confirming that a face is present and appropriately positioned. We do not perform facial recognition or identification, and we do not match your photograph against any database, watchlist, or other individual's photograph.

3.3. Every photo is also reviewed and approved by a staff member before your application proceeds. Automated checks never make a final decision about your photo on their own.

4. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal information because it is necessary to perform the service you have requested from us (preparing and submitting your visa application), to comply with legal obligations, and, in limited cases (such as marketing communications, if you opt in), on the basis of your consent, which you may withdraw at any time.

5. Sharing Your Information

5.1. We share your information with the relevant visa application centre (VAC), embassy, consulate, or government portal, strictly to the extent necessary to submit your application, and only by our staff manually transcribing or submitting your details — we do not automate submission to any government system.

5.2. We use the following categories of third-party service providers, who process information on our behalf under appropriate agreements: payment processors (Yoco, Ozow), messaging providers (Twilio, for WhatsApp notifications), and hosting/infrastructure providers.

5.3. We do not sell your personal information to any third party.

5.4. Where you were referred by an agency or individual referrer, that referrer is only ever told whether a referral converted into a paid application, for commission purposes. They do not receive your documents or application details.

6. Cross-Border Transfers

Some of our service providers (such as our messaging provider) may process information outside South Africa. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure your information receives a level of protection consistent with POPIA.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our service, comply with our legal obligations (including recordkeeping requirements), resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Documents related to a completed application are retained for a limited period thereafter and then securely deleted, unless a longer period is required by law.

8. Data Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against loss, unauthorised access, and misuse, including restricting document access to staff involved in processing your application and using encrypted connections for data transmitted to and from our website.

9. Your Rights

Under POPIA, you have the right to:

• Request access to the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate or outdated information
• Request deletion of your personal information, subject to our legal and recordkeeping obligations
• Object to processing of your information in certain circumstances
• Withdraw consent, where processing is based on consent
• Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@zd-solutions.co.za.

10. Information Officer

Our designated Information Officer can be contacted at info@zd-solutions.co.za for any queries or complaints relating to how we handle your personal information.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be posted on this website with a revised "Last updated" date.

12. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact us at info@zd-solutions.co.za.