General Work Visa 

A General Work Visa South Africa, is one of 5 types of work visa categories that you can make a work visa application under.

Unlike the others types of work visa, the general work visa requires that the employer has made every attempt to try to fill their vacant position with either a South African Citizen or permanent resident.

Below we give you 10 important facts you need to know about a General Work Visa South Africa.

1. Background to a General Work Visa South Africa:

The whole basis on which general work visa are issued is two fold: To protect South African labour by ensuring that positions filled by foreign workers can not be met through locals. To enable companies to recruit foreign workers where they are unable to locally.

2. Who should apply for a General Work Visa South Africa?

Applicants for a general work visa should first ensure that they do not meet the qualifying criteria for any of the other work visas. This can be done by taking advantage of our free assessment. In addition they shouldn’t be applicants who are being transferred by their employer from an international branch or whose employer holds a corporate work visa.

3. Do spouses and partners need to apply for a general work visa?

No general work visa application is required for spouses or partners of South African citizens or permanent resident holders. The correct visa application for spouses and partners is a spousal or partner visa. This visa can then be endorsed to allow the applicant to work for a specific employer.

4. What is the basic qualifying criteria for a general work visa?

The following will be required for a general work visa application:

• Job offer and acceptance.
• CV.
• Proof of the employer’s attempts to first recruit a South African permanent resident or citizen for the position.
• SAQA registration, confirming the applicant’s qualifications.
• Proof of good health and character.

5. Where can applications be made?

Applications for a general work visa should be made at the embassy or consulate in the applicants home country. Renewing of a general work visa can take place in South Africa.

6. Can spouses and partners of general work visa holders also work?

Only the holder of a general work visa is entitled to work. An accompanying partner or spouse visa can be applied for but this only allows for entry and stay in South Africa. Should the spouse or partner also wish to take up employment they would need to apply for the appropriate work visa themselves. Also children would need to have separate applications made for study visa.

7. How long does the application process take?

Time frames for processing general work visa vary greatly. Once the application has been submitted it generally takes around 8 – 12 weeks but delays in this are common. Please note that compiling the application also takes some time as adverts must be run and SAQA obtained.

8. How long is a general work visa valid for?

The validity period can vary but is typically between 2 and 4 years. General work visa can also be extended by a making a further application towards the existing general work visa expiry date.

9. Can I apply for permanent residency with a general work visa?

The first step is to secure temporary residency and you cannot apply straight away for permanent residency. However once you have held your general work visa for a unbroken period of 5 years you may apply for permanent residency.

10. What comes first the job offer or the work visa?

Prospective immigrants to South Africa are often frustrated as they attempt to secure jobs. Often employees will not entertain the prospect of offering positions to foreigners who are not in possession of a work visa. Some of this is down to not understanding the process. You can however increase your chances of success. Start the process by obtaining your SAQA and informing the prospective employer that you have started the work visa process and retained an immigration company already.

Next steps

You may be surprised at the work visa options that are available to you. In the first instance we recommend you speak to one of our experts . They will provide you with a free assessment that carries no obligation. So to get started and find out more about a general work visa South Africa call us today.

Getting help with your visa or permit application

We welcome the opportunity to consult with you as to your eligibility for a visa /permit and answer any questions you may have with no obligation.

www.samigration.com

Critical skills work visa permit for South Africa

Welcome to the critical skills work visa and permit category. For those potential applicants for a work visa or permit to South Africa, and even those existing work permit or visa holders, this category of work visa may well be great news.

Introduced in the new Immigration regulations in June 2014, the Critical skills work visa and permit saw a refreshingly forward thinking approach by the Department of Home Affairs to attracting much needed skills to South Africa and improving the visa and permit application process.

Some highlights of the critical skills work category include:

• It allows you to get a work visa without a job offer.
• It allows you to enter and stay in South Africa for 12 months to secure a position.
• Is based on a well researched list of occupations that are badly needed in South Africa, increasing your chances of finding a job.
• No restrictions in terms of the numbers in each listed occupation.
• No department of labour recommendation so quicker turnaround times.
• Deals with the professional bodies specific to the occupation.
• Can be a pathway to permanent residence immediately as well an immediate 5 year working visa.
• Qualification for a critical skills visa if you completed a post graduate (Phd) in South Africa.
• Less obligation on employers.

Both permanent and temporary residency options

A temporary critical skills work visa is issued for a 5 year period of time. After 5 years you can then apply for permanent residence.

If you already have 5 years experience in your occupation then there is every chance you can immediately apply for permanent residence as well.

What is the key criteria for a critical skills visa or permit application?

You must feature on the critical skills list, this is firstly based on your educational subject and then further broken down into occupations within these educational areas.

What If I am not on the critical skills list?

There are other visa alternatives that you may qualify for and we recommend you contact us

Great news I am on the list critical skills!

The best next step is to e-mail us and attach your CV, if you don’t have a current CV why not call us on any of the above numbers or request a call back.

Getting help with your visa or permit application

We welcome the opportunity to consult with you as to your eligibility for a visa /permit and answer any questions you may have with no obligation.

www.samigration.com

Corporate Workers Visa Corporate workers certificate

Where a company is in possession of a valid corporate work visa, it has in effect a permission to recruit a certain number of foreign workers, into specific positions for finite period of time.

As an example the company may have applied for 200 civil engineers, if successful, they will be issued 200 corporate workers certificates. These certificates can then be used in the subsequent application for a corporate workers visa. These corporate workers certificate negates many of the criteria normally associated with applications for certain type of work permits.

Is the corporate workers visa for temporary or permanent residency?

The corporate workers visa is issued as a temporary residency visa for a maximum of 4 year, or for a period not exceeding the corporate visa held by the company.

In itself the corporate workers visa may not lead to permanent residency. However the time the worker has held it for can be utilised for permanent residency applications made under the 5 year rule. The 5 year rule says that applications can be made for permanent residency by individuals who have held appropriate work visas for 5 years in South Africa.

What must be submitted with a corporate workers visa application?

Applications must include:

• The applicants valid passport;
• Biometrics of the applicant;
• The relevant corporate workers certificate as issued under the corporate visa;
• A contract of employment;
• Proof of the foreign employees qualifications;
• Proof of registration with the appropriate professional body;

What are the restrictions?

It should be remembered that the employee may only be utilised by the South African company in the capacity for which the corporate workers certificate was issued.

The corporate workers visa cannot be extended.

Getting help with your visa or permit application

We welcome the opportunity to consult with you as to your eligibility for a visa /permit and answer any questions you may have with no obligation.

www.samigration.com

Corporate Visas Immigration South Africa

A corporate visa can only be issued to South African registered company or branch (the applicant) and it offers the possibility to employ great numbers of employees from abroad, all under the remit of one application.

The Corporate Visa may be issued to a corporate applicant to enable them to employ foreigners who may take up employment for the applicant for a limited period of time.

Who should apply for a corporate visa?

The application is directed for corporates with a need for a predetermined number of foreign personnel. This predetermined need, will have to be proven against a backdrop of there being an insufficient number of South African citizens or permanent resident holders that are capable of filling certain roles within the organisation.

What is required in the corporate visa application?

There are a large number of requirements that are associated with the corporate visa application . It is however important to understand the mindset behind these requirements:

The corporate visa is not an open invitation to recruit on mass from abroad for reasons such as cheaper labour. The company applying has to include in its application detailed job descriptions and the proposed remuneration in respect of each employee. The company will also need to provide proof of the specific job requirements to show the skill sets required as well as illustrate the recruitment efforts they have employed to historically try and find South Africans to fill their vacancies.

As such the corporate visa’s role is to protect suitably qualified South Africans from being prejudiced within the local job market, whilst affording companies with a genuine need, to seek large numbers of staff from overseas.

How a corporate visa works?

If a successful application is made, upon receipt of the corporate visa a company may then recruit individuals that fulfil the roles specified within their corporate visa application by means of issued corporate workers certificates.

Upon identifying the appropriate foreigner to fulfil the role, a job offer is made, and subsequent to this a corporate workers visa can be applied for utilising the corporate workers certificate.

In essence it is a two stop process. Firstly to obtain the corporate visa and then to apply for a corporate workers visa. .

What are the advantages of a corporate visa?

A corporate visa represents an excellent way for companies to manage their human resource needs. Due to South Africa’s fast growing economy and increasing demands for services and products from the domestic and international market, your company may struggle to fill all available positions with South African personnel. Certain professionals in highly specialised areas may simply not be accessible in South Africa.

To apply for work visa’s on a case by case basis may not be in the best interests of your company. With the Corporate Visa allowing your company to obtain permission from Home Affairs to recruit a certain number of foreign employees to fulfil certain roles over a finite period of time, this visa may be an attractive option.

One of the advantages of the Corporate Visa has been approved, the individual employees then apply for a corporate workers visa which is far less onerous, than for example, a general work visa. It is also quicker in theory to process and leads to cost-saving.

Are there any disadvantages?

Yes there are, the compiling of the application. Obtaining permission to recruit a large number of foreigners within one application is a lengthy process. Mainly due to the fact that you need to prove that you require not just one, but many foreign workers. In some cases this may be hundreds of positions covered in just one application. Providing such proof means the compilation of the application along with the decision making process can add up to many months.

Note there is every likelihood that you will have to utilise other work visa options whilst awaiting for your corporate visa application to be processed simply due to the time involved

Getting advice

In the new immigration amendments, published in June 2014, the criteria for a corporate visa application became more complex. It is therefore essential you seek professional guidance on this option as an incorrect decision could leave you with severe human resource issues, not to mention wasted money and frustrations.

Introducing Intergate Immigration’s corporate division

The needs of corporations are very different to that of individual applicants, after all you have a business to run. Our unique approach to corporate visa and permit requirements has seen us become the trusted partner for over 250 large corporates, including a number of South Africa’s and the worlds leading companies.

We are the only South African immigration company to have been accredited ISO 9001 and are also able to offer our clients immigration solutions for other African countries as well.

Getting help with your visa or permit application

We welcome the opportunity to consult with you as to your eligibility for a visa /permit and answer any questions you may have with no obligation.

www.samigration.com

Applying for Critical Skills Work Visa for South Africa

The critical skills work visa was a very welcome addition, in June 2014, to the types of work visas that a prospective immigrant may consider to apply for.

It carries with it a host of benefits and boasts very clear qualifying criteria which can only assist South Africa in attracting much needed skills.

Below we take you through the process and criteria associated with applying for a critical skills work permit.

The critical skills list

Applications can only be made by those who feature on the critical skills list. To view whether your occupation is on the current critical skills

Where to apply for a critical skills work visa

• Applications that are made for a critical skills work visa that involve a change of status, for example from a short term tourist visa of 90 days to work visa, must be made from outside of South Africa.
• Where an application is made by an individual, who is already in possession of an appropriate residency visa, for example a critical skills work visa holder seeking to renew their visa, can be made in South Africa.

Requirements within the application

All the normal requirements that accompany a temporary visa application such a good standing, medical and the appropriate application form must be complied with. In addition applications for the critical skills visa carry with them a number of further items.

When applying for a critical skills work visa the applicant will need to show that they fall within the critical skills category they are making their application under. This includes:

• A certificate from the professional body, council or board recognised by SAQA or any relevant government Department confirming the skills or qualifications of the applicant.
• An evaluation of the foreign qualification by SAQA and translated by a sworn translator into one of the official languages of South Africa.
• Proof of their application for registration with the professional body, council or board.

As the critical skills visa is a work visa. there are also various requirements within the application that the employer needs to commit to:

Need more guidance on applying for a critical skills work visa?

Any application for immigration can be complex and hard to understand. There is of course a burden of proof required within the application to clearly demonstrate that the applicant meets the criteria as laid down in the Immigration Act.

Assessing your eligibility, compiling your application and dealing with the Department of Home Affairs may all seem very technical and burdensome, that’s why we are here.

Our DHA accredited immigration company, with a a track record of over 1,000’s of successful applications and a much envied client first philosophy, our role is to be with you every step of the way throughout your critical skills visa application.

Getting help with your visa or permit application

We welcome the opportunity to consult with you as to your eligibility for a visa /permit and answer any questions you may have with no obligation.

www.samigration.com