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

Work visa requirements for South African immigration

Background to Work Visa for South African Immigration

South Africa offers a number of options for those who are seeking a Work Visa for the purposes of South African immigration.

Similar to other countries the Work Visa legislation focuses on two main areas:

1. The protection of employment opportunities for South Africans
2. The ability to recruit skilled foreign workers into skill shortage areas or fulfil corporate requirements.

In essence regulations around Work Visas have to provide a balance between making sure employers recruit local South Africans where possible, but allow them to recruit workers from abroad where they are unable to do this.

Types of Work Visa

Broadly speaking there are two types of Work Visa

1. Where the applicant does not have a job offer.
2. Where the applicant has a job offer

Where the applicant requires a work visa and does not have a job offer:

1. Critical skills work visa – This visa is based on a well researched list of occupations that are badly needed in South Africa. You don’t need a job offer to apply for the visa, and the visa enables you to enter and stay in South Africa for 12 months to secure a position

Where the applicant requires a work visa and has a job offer

There exists three options for applying for immigration to South Africa via a work visa where the applicant has a job offer:

1. An Intra company transfer – Where the individual is being transferred from a branch of the company, based outside of South Africa, to a branch of the company within South Africa. This work visa can also be applied for by individuals who are employees of sister companies or companies with a shared interest. The visa allows the employee to relocate to South Africa and undertake employment for a certain period of time and only for the specified employer.
2. Corporate work visas – These can be applied for by organisations that have a need to recruit a number of foreign staff over a set period of time. Obtaining a corporate work visa is hugely beneficial to an organisation. It not only reduces costs, but also speeds up the work visa application process. The individuals applying ‘under’ the corporate visa do not have to provide for many of the requirements normally associated with a work visa.

General work visa – Where an individual does not meet the criteria of any of the above work visas an application would have to made under the General Work Visa category. According to the South African Immigration Act, the applicant for a General Work visa has to provide a conditional offer of employment from a South African based employer. In addition also documentation, confirming that the employer has fully endeavoured to employ South African citizens or residents.

Some Frequently asked questions on work visas

Can I apply for Permanent Residency with a work visa?

Obtaining permanent residency via the work visa option inevitably means first having to not just get temporary residency but also maintain it for a 5 year period of time. Intra company transfer visa are not considered within this 5 year rule.

Can my family come with me?

Partners and dependants can accompany holders of work visas. Please note partners are not allowed to study, work or run a business, they are simply allowed only to accompany and stay in South Africa. They may also not be included in permanent residency applications but may themselves apply at a later time dependent on their relationships with the permanent resident.

What about my children attending school?

Dependant children can attend a South African school but need to first obtain a study visa.

Why not subscribe to our newsletter to make sure you keep up to date on the requirements for South Africa work visas.

www.samigration.com

Still no functional refugee reception office in Cape Town.

• Despite court orders, since Home Affairs closed its refugee reception office in Cape Town it has not reopened a new one.
• Home Affairs dragged the matter through the courts for six years, losing every time.
• Since 2017 it has made little progress in reopening a “fully functional refugee reception office in or around the Cape Town” as ordered by the court.
• In a recent report Home Affairs said it had had to start the tender process from scratch.

Nearly two years have passed since the Department of Home Affairs promised to open a Cape Town Refugee Reception Office (CTRRO) once again, and nearly a decade has passed since it decided in 2012 to stop processing new asylum applications in Cape Town.

In a judgment on 30 August 2012, the Western Cape High Court ordered Cape Town Home Affairs to start serving new applicants again. The judge said the cost to Home Affairs of assisting newcomers was negligible compared to the harm done to them.

The court said delaying implementation of the court order would cause grievous harm to asylum seekers. While undocumented, they would be subject to arrest and deportation.

Yt Home Affair proceeded to drag the matter through the courts until in September 2017, the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled that Home Affairs must “reopen and maintain a fully functional refugee reception office in or around the Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality by 31 March 2018.”

Home Affairs sought leave to appeal from the Constitutional Court but this was refused. This means the SCA ruling is final.

In January 2019, GroundUp reported that Home Affairs, which by then was already in contempt of the court order, said a site in Maitland had been identified by the Department of Public Works and the proposed date for the office to be occupied was 1 June 2019, according to the Legal Resource Centre (LRC).

In July 2019, the LRC requested Home Affairs submit a detailed plan for the new office, including updated timelines and the reason for missing its June deadline.

Last week, Petra Marais, attorney at LRC, said Home Affairs had sent reports every three to six months, instead of the monthly reports ordered by the Supreme Court of Appeal in 2017.

Marais said, “The last report received from Home Affairs for the period of August 2020 to January 2021 advised that Home Affairs together with the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure has put out another tender during 2020 for new premises for the CTRRO, and from the bids received have now identified a premise in Epping.”

“The LRC has not received updated time lines nor a list of tasks completed during this time. From the reports filed by Home Affairs we were notified that the reason the previous premises fell through was that the landlord could not deliver on all the requirements set by Home Affairs. The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure thereafter advised Home Affairs that the tender process has ‘restarted from scratch’. We were given no reason as to why the tender process had to restart since the Department received five tenders from its 2018 bid, and therefore had four more tenders to consider.”

Marais said the reports filed by Home Affairs “still fail to provide us with timelines, adequate direction and sufficient information for why the Department is not complying with the SCA order”.

Despite various announcements by Home Affairs, refugees and asylum seekers have been struggling to access services for almost a decade now, and the situation became worse when the pandemic struck.

At present, Home Affairs in Cape Town only renews asylum documents and refugee statuses for people who originally applied in Cape Town.

With lockdown in March last year, services were suspended and Home Affairs declared an automatic renewal of documentation. At present, asylum seeker permits that expired, or were due to expire during lockdown, are valid until 31 March 2021.

Last year, the Scalabrini Centre said it is concerned about the number of refugees and asylum seekers with expired documents, and that the Department of Home Affairs has not made public any plans about dealing with the disruption caused by Covid-19.

GroundUp has tried to get comment from Home Affairs spokesperson Siya Qoza and media manager David Hlabane since 17 March

A retired permit, visa, as a means of immigration to South Africa, is granted to immigrants wishing to spend their retirement years in South Africa. For immigration to South Africa, under the category of a retired permit, the criteria is based on the premise that the immigrant is not looking to work, study or carry out their own business.

Retired Permit / Visa Criteria

As with all permit applications and visa applications associated with immigration to South Africa, there are a number of criteria that must be satisfied. Below are some of the main points:

• There are no age restrictions on a retired persons permit, either for a minimum age or maximum;
• Applications for retired person permits can be made under the temporary and permanent categories;
• Both income and capital can be used when a temporary or permanent retired person permit is being applied for;
• Pension, retirement or an irrevocable annuity and other lifetime guaranteed income can be utilized when applying for a Permanent Residency in the Retired Persons category.

Working out if you qualify for a retired permit / visa

Working out whether you meet the qualifying criteria can be quite complex as only certain types of income and capital are allowed. To ensure you meet the qualifying criteria you would need to contact us.

Retired Permit / Visa – Temporary Residency

Applications for retired permits under temporary residency can be made for a period of 4 years only. After the 4 years they can be further extended by making an application to home affairs and proving that the criteria are still being met.

As a retired persons permit one of the main criteria concerns the prospective immigrant’s financial status and proving they have sufficient means to support themselves.

For temporary residency each applicant must demonstrate that they have: ZAR 37,000 per month, per applicant. This can be in the form of cash/cash equivalents or cash income generated by capital asset(s). The proof of funds can be either of the aforementioned or a combination of both.

Examples:

Retired temporary permit / visa based on cash or cash equivalents:

For each month the couple apply for a temporary retired persons permit, they would need to show cash available to the amount of ZAR 37,000. Therefore the 4 year permit equation would be 48 months (4 years/12 months in a year) times ZAR 37,000 per month. A figure of ZAR 1,776,000 in cash or cash equivalents will need to be shown as proof of funds in order for the couple to qualify.

Retired temporary (or permanent residency) based on cash income generated by a capital asset or pension:

A married couple with an income of R74,000 per month from appropriate property rental income or pension.

The criteria would be met and the couple could apply for the 4 years under the retired persons permit category. They could also apply for permanent residency provided the rental income or pension income used as proof of funds can be proved to be life-long guaranteed. For more details see the below section Retired Permit/Visa permanent residency.

For a Retired Permit / Visa for Permanent Residency

Permanent residency applications under the retired permit category can be made without the need to first obtain temporary residency, but in practice most immigrants will apply for both (where they meet the qualifying criteria) due to the long processing times of Home Affairs – approximately 24 months.

The financial criteria for retired permits under the permanent category are similar to that of temporary in that the ZAR 37,000 monthly income needs to be proved. However, the proof of funds needs to be life-long guaranteed income and not capital based or a cash lump sum.

Please note that at the time of submission of your Retired Permanent Residency application, the annuity or pension income needs to be payable at the current date. Bank statements will be needed as supporting evidence that these funds are credited into your account when submission takes place.

Financially independent permit – the alternative to proving income

For those applicants who cannot meet the required income levels for residency under the retired permit or retired visa a suitable alternative for those with assets over 12 million rand would be the Financially independent permit. You can read more about the permit and visa alternative here.

Relatives permit visa for immigration to South Africa

Considering immigration to South Africa and have relatives already here? Below we discuss the relatives permit / visa option, how to apply and who qualifies.

Who can apply for a relatives permit?

In order to successfully apply for a relatives permits / visa you will need to be a first kin.

First kin relatives may apply for both temporary residence and permanent residence, known as a relatives visa and relatives permit, whereas second kin may only apply for temporary residence, the relatives visa.

What are first kin and second kin relatives?

• First kin relatives are those of a parent, child or husband/wife relationship.
• Second kin relatives are brothers and sisters.- Temporary Residence only

Can you work on a relatives permit / visa?

This will depend on whether you apply and receive the relatives visa (temporary residence) or the relatives permit (permanent residence)

The relatives visa

A temporary relatives visa does not allow for the holder to work or run a business. It simply allows the holder to be able to immigrate to South Africa for a set period of time, normally 2 years, and not undertake any other activities. In essence almost akin to a long term tourist visa.

If you would like more information on working or running a business in South Africa as an immigrant you can use the below links:

The relatives permit

Those successful applicants for a relatives permit, are afforded nearly all the rights of a South African citizen as they are awarded permanent residence. Permanent residence allows you total freedom to work, study or own and work in businesses as you please.

Can a temporary relatives visa be renewed?

Yes they can, but in practice renewing a temporary relatives visa is the same as applying for a new one and the applicant must meet all the current criteria for the visa application to be successful.

How long does permanent residency relatives permit take?

The Department of Home Affairs publishes time scales but in reality these are often not adhered to. Experience in submitting many relatives permit applications has shown us that you can wait for up to 2 years before they are issued.

As many people do not plan their immigration 2 years in advance, it is often the case that we have to apply for both temporary and permanent residency under the relatives category to fit in with peoples immigration timetables.

Must I be sponsored by my South African relative?

There is a requirement for a financial assurance in the amount of R8500 per month, per person. This financial assurance must be from the sponsor (South African relative).

What is needed for a relatives permit application?

The applicant will be required to furnish amongst other the following documents .

The passport which is required to have at least one blank page for the insertion of the permit / visa;

• A passport
• Proof of the relatives relationship, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates etc;
• Documentation that proves the availability of financial support per month per person for financial assurance (a waiver can be applied for spouses or dependent minor children of a South African citizen/permanent resident to waive the minimum financial requirements).

Do you submit from overseas or in South Africa?

The spouses, life partners and children (minor or major) of South African citizens and permanent residents can submit their relative visa applications in South Africa from a visitors visa, following the issuance of Directive 7 of 2019 implemented in July 2019.

Unfortunately, this does not extend to parents of South Africans. Parents and other eligible relatives must submit their visa applications at an embassy or consulate abroad.