01 / 03Pillar
Independent from the start.
No check is self-reported. Every data point is confirmed by the issuing authority — DHA, SAPS or the employer of record. We never take the worker's word alone.
- Source-verified data
- No self-reported inputs
Chapter 09 · How it works
Five checks. One signed file. Under 48 hours.
From a worker's first submission to an employer's verified hire — every step is independent, timestamped, and on record.
Chapter 09.01 · The problem with trust
In South Africa, 84% of domestic theft is committed by someone known to the household. The threat is not the stranger. It is the unverified familiar.
Why verification matters
Most platforms stop at a photo and a name. You get a phone number for a reference who used to be a neighbour, a photocopy of an ID that may or may not be current, and a handshake across the gate. That is not trust — that is hope.
Hustla runs five checks, all independent of each other and of the worker, and packages them into a signed file. The file belongs to the worker. Employers receive a verified copy. Neither side has to take the other's word for anything.
— The verification team | Cape Town, June 2024
Chapter 09.02 · The verification process
Five checks, every time. No exceptions.
Every worker on Hustla passes the same five-point framework, in the same order. No shortcuts for returning workers, no partial checks for agency referrals. The file is complete or it is not issued.
Step one is identity: biometric face-match against the Department of Home Affairs national database. No faceprint, no file. This eliminates the photocopy problem in a single stroke.
Steps two through five cover criminal record (SAPS name-and-fingerprint search), home address confirmation (physical visit with photo evidence), right-to-work status for foreign nationals (DHA work-permit registry), and a minimum of two previous-employer references — recorded, signed, and counter-verified within 48 hours.
The framework is not proprietary. It is published in full, audited by PSiRA each quarter, and revised only when a check standard changes at the source.
The five checks
- Check 1
- SA ID & biometrics (DHA)
- Check 2
- Criminal record (SAPS)
- Check 3
- Home address (in-person)
- Check 4
- Work-permit status (DHA)
- Check 5
- Employer references (×2)
- Turnaround
- Under 48 hours
- Audited by
- PSiRA (quarterly)
Chapter 09.03 · Our verification principles
Built on three standards.
Every decision in the framework starts with one of these. They are not aspirational. They are operational.
02 / 03Pillar
Complete or not issued.
A partial file is not a Hustla file. All five checks must pass before the verification seal is issued. There is no 'mostly clear' in our framework.
- All 5 checks required
- No partial issuance
03 / 03Pillar
Portable and revocable.
The file belongs to the worker. They carry it across employers, can revoke access at any point, and receive a copy in their own name.
- Worker-owned record
- Revocable at any time
Chapter 09.05 · By the numbers
Speed and accuracy, measured.
Figures from the Hustla operations ledger. Updated quarterly.
01 / 03Median submission→clear
41h
From first upload to a signed, employer-ready file.
02 / 03Check pass rate
94%
Of submissions that clear all five checks on first run.
03 / 03Disputes raised
0.3%
Of issued files have ever been formally contested.
Chapter 09.06 · Start a verification
Ready to verify with confidence?
Whether you are hiring your first domestic worker or onboarding an entire floor crew — the same five-point file applies. Start a search, or begin your own verification in under ten minutes.
Two ways in
12,438 verifiedUnder 48h to hire