07-10-2021

Life partner visas and / or visas are issued to foreigners who are immigrating to South Africa with a South African boyfriend or girlfriend (life partner) with whom they are in a permanent relationship.

Life partner visas and visas are not commonly known and accessing information about them can be difficult, but qualifying people should look to ensure they consider applying within the life partner visa or visa category as it can have some excellent benefits.

Below we discuss both the life partner visa for permanent residence, and the life partner visa for temporary residence. You can find more specific information on each by simply following the links or in further information.

The Life Partner Visa and Visa Options

To successfully apply for a life partner visa or visa there are a number of different criteria the applicants must meet. Perhaps the most onerous being the compiling of sufficient ‘evidence’ that the relationship is indeed of a permanent nature and it is one of a ‘life partner’ status.

Proving cohabitation is also a key element as the length of cohabitation will dictate whether you may qualify for a life partner visa (permanent residence) or a life partner visa (temporary residence).

As South Africa’s leading independent immigration company, Sa Migration Immigration advises, compiles, submits with you and monitors the entire application on its client’s behalf. Our years of experience and enviable success rate in obtaining life partner visas and visas, means that our clients can rest assured that they are in expert hands.

Life Partner Visa- Temporary Residence

Life partners of South Africans may apply for a life partner visa under the temporary residence category. Once again there is an onus on proving the relationship is valid, of a permanent nature and in this case, that cohabitation has existed for at least 2 years.

Temporary residence visas are issued for an initial period, typically for 2 or 3 years. Applications can be made to extend this period subject to the relationship still existing.

Life Partner Visas – Permanent Residence

Life partner visas under the permanent residence category can be made if it can be proven that the relationship has been of a permanent nature for 5 years.

Prospective immigrants should be aware that even if they meet the criteria to make an application for a life partner under the permanent category, in all likelihood a temporary life partner visa will need to be applied for due to the fact home affairs is taking approximately 24 months to issue permanent residence to applicants.

Life Partner Visas – Working or Setting up a Business

For holders of life partner visas the news is excellent – you are free to work, set up a business or study with no further permissions!

For the holders of a life partner visa the news is good – whilst the life partner visa itself only allows you to enter and stay in South Africa, an endorsement can easily be obtained, allowing you to work, study or set up a business.

Endorsing your life partner visa

For work – once a suitable position has been found and offered via a contract of employment, Sa Migration Immigration can apply for an endorsement to the life partner visa enabling the life partner to work, This negates the need to apply for a work visa or the requirements such as proving no South African is available to take up the position.

For business – a similar endorsement can be applied for with the immigrant needing to prove that the business exists, this can be done by providing documentary proof that a suitable company structure has been set up, such as a (Pty) Ltd for example.

For study – once you have been excepted for a course by an appropriate learning institution, an endorsement can be applied for to enable you to legally study.

It should be noted that applications for life partner visa and endorsements can be made simultaneously

A life partner visa is an application based upon the individuals relationship with a South African for permanent residence.

Who should apply for a life partner visa South Africa?

Applications for a life partner visa should be made by those individuals who are in a permanent relationship with a South African citizen or Permanent Residence holder.

Life partner visas do not discriminate between heterosexual or same-sex couples and the requirements and process are identical.

What is the definition of a life partner in South Africa?

Let’s first look at the official definition:

“Such relationship must be intended to be permanent, exclude any other person and involve cohabitation, an obligation of mutual emotional support between the parties and a reciprocal obligation to support one another financially in circumstances where the one has the means to do so and the other requires such support to maintain, without recourse to public funds, his or her financial and social standing and standard of living.”

This is not a black and white area and perhaps one of the most difficult parts of applying for a life partner visa. As with many countries South Africa places a large emphasis on the period of cohabitation.

For a life partner visa this cohabitation period must be for 5 years.

If you cannot meet the 5 year cohabitation requirements then please see here for details on the temporary residence option, the life partner visa.

There is also an onus of proving the relationship meets the official definition and proving the relationship is akin to that of a married one with both emotional and financial support being factors.

Therefore applications for life partner visas need to ensure that they include ample proof of the permanent nature of their relationship.

What type of proof needs to be submitted with a Life Partner visa application?

Proof needs to substantiate both the historic nature of the relationship as well as it going forward. Obvious items include:

• Joint bank statements
• Joint financial commitments
• Proof of cohabitation
• Affidavits from relations and friends as to the nature and term of the relationship

Most of these of course apply to financially supporting each other, emotional support can be hard to prove with documentation.

For this very reason and the fact that the life partner visa is one of the most abused in South Africa, interviews are compulsory. Interviews comprise of a Department of Home Affairs or Consulate Official taking up their right to call the applicant and their spouse in for interviews.

These interviews will normally be conducted separately and together and the aim is for the official to form an opinion as to whether the couple meet the criteria of proving the relationship is in keeping with the official definition.

It must therefore be stressed that advice and consultation from an immigration expert is best sought.

Where to apply for your Life Partner visa

In the past, Life partner visas were commonly applied for in South Africa. The life partner of the South African would enter South Africa on a Travel visa, valid for 3 months. After entry they would then make the submission at a Department of Home Affairs Office.

This route is now no longer available to most people as new legislation has prevented any visa or visa application in South Africa that changes an applicant’s status. The vast majority of applications must now be submitted in the applicants home country, with the exception of those who already hold a life partner visa or other qualifying visa type.

Can you work on a Life Partner Visa?

Yes you can. In fact, you can enjoy all the rights that a South African Citizen does with regards to your ability to work, run a business or study.

Endorsing a Life Partner Visa

Endorsing a Life Partner Visa

Please note the below information on endorsing a life partner visa applies to life partner visas that were issued under the new Immigration rules as of June 2014 and new applications.

These new regulations saw a change in how life partner visas were named:

• A visa is now for permanent residence.
• A visa is for temporary residence.

Who needs to endorse a life partner visa?

Key here is your status as either a permanent resident or temporary resident.

• Permanent residence holders (or applicants) needs not apply for an endorsement and are free to conduct business, work or study activities with no further permissions from the Department of Home Affairs.
• Temporary residence holders, or applicants, (now known as a life partner visa) will need their life partner visa endorsed.

Life Partner  - Immigration South Africa

A Life partner visa for South Africa is a form of relatives visa. They can be applied for by applicants who wish to join either:

• Their partner who is a South African Citizen
• Their partner who is a South African Permanent Resident

It is more and more common for couples to not get married and the provision of a life partner visa in South Africa’s immigration rules caters for those in permanent relationships but not spouses.

Need to knows about a Life Partner Visa South Africa

1. With a spousal visa proof of the relationship is easy – a marriage certificate. Proving the relationship for a Life partner visa is not so straight forward. The criteria as laid down by the Department of Home Affairs specifies “such relationship must be intended to be permanent, exclude any other person and involve cohabitation, an obligation of mutual emotional support between the parties and a reciprocal obligation to support one another financially …” It therefore follows that the application for a life partner visa for South Africa focuses on the evidence of this relationship.
2. An application for a Life Partner visa now requires the applicants to have lived with the South African Citizen or Permanent Resident for a period of 2 years. If you do not possess this proof you will need to look at another visa option.
3. Applications for a Life Partner visa can be submitted abroad in country of origin or the country where you hold residence. Alternatively, submission can be done in South Africa when one is on a visitor’s visa (generally issued for 90 days). This is a new development that came into effect in July 2019.
4. Working on life partner visa is not allowed, nor is running a business or studying. A life partner visa is purely permission to enter and stay in South Africa with your South Africa partner. However, that said, holding a life partner visa, or an entitlement to apply for it, does provide applicants wishing to undertake some form of activity with a huge advantage. Applicants may apply for an endorsement to work, study or run a business rather than make a stand alone visa application under the specific category i.e. work, business or study which means meeting far less stringent criteria.
5. The endorsement process for a life partner visa can be applied for in two ways:- At the time of the application for the life partner visa- At any time when holding a life partner visa. The right to apply is of particular importance as many foreign partners have not secured employment or ‘set in stone’ their plans when making their initial application. For more details on endorsements to life partner visas see here.
6. Applications for permanent residence cannot be made on a life partner visa, but can be on a life partner visa. This is where the applicant is able to prove that the relationship has been in existence for a period of 5 years or more.For relationships that are yet to hit their 5 year anniversary, or lack substantive proof of such, then the life partner visa is the only option other than assessing their qualification under another criteria.

It is also worth bearing in mind the processing time for life partner visa applications for permanent residence. This can take up to 3 years for the Department of Home Affairs to process. So unless the planned move to South Africa is made well in advance, there is every likelihood that even when the permanent residence rules can be met an application for temporary residence (life partner visa) will also need to made.

Finding out more about applying for a Life Partner Visa

Summary

• If you are making a life partner visa application (permanent residence) you do need to concern yourself with endorsing your life partner visa and are free to carry on your chosen activity with no further permissions when it is granted.
• If you have a life partner visa or visa on a temporary residence basis you will need an endorsement.
• Find out more information on endorsing the ‘old life’ partner visa here.
• Find out more information on endorsing the ‘new’ life partner visa.

Getting help with your visa or visa application

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

www.samigration.com