Members of the organisation, Locked in South Africa (Lisa), want to go back to the countries where they have jobs.

The ministries of International Relations and Home Affairs are currently reviewing each of the applications for permission to board international flights.

It is estimated that South Africans working abroad have lost R60-million in the past month, simply because they're stuck here.

The organisation wants government to help speed up the process so these people can return to the countries where they're employed.

Some stand to lose their jobs if they don't go back by the end of this month.

Many are teachers in Asian countries. 

About 1,500 South Africans want to go back to the USA where they work in the agricultural sector, assisting local family farms.

The US government has pleaded for their return as they play a crucial role in the American food production chain. 

500 are seafarers who, according to Maritime law, are exempt from local lockdown regulations. They will be replaced if they don’t return to their vessels by the beginning of June. 

The group is calling for new draft regulations to be gazetted, giving citizens who are employed or living abroad blanket permission to return there at their own cost.

eNCA