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If you are a ZEP holder and have not submitted your mainstream visa application yet, this reminder is for you. ZEP holders only have until 30 June 2023 to change to a mainstream visa in terms of the South African immigration law and if not, they unfortunately have to depart from this beautiful country or look into another alternative such as asylum seeker status or refugee status (which might really not be the best option). We therefore urge these individuals to submit their applications as soon as possible as there is, currently, NO alternative dispensation programme for a stay in South Africa. If you qualify for a critical skills work visa, please submit your application urgently. If you obtain your critical skills work visa, we recommend applying for permanent residence immediately should you qualify for same. This same recommendation is for those individuals who qualify for spousal visas and/or other visas. If you don't qualify for the above-mentioned, please still try a waiver for a general work visa. A friendly reminder that if you lived in South Africa for the last 5 years and longer, you do not require a police clearance from your home country anymore - only a clearance from South Africa which you can apply for at VFS on day of submission. Furthermore, the requirement of a radiological report has also been waived by the Department of Home Affairs. Should you require any further information regarding the change from ZEP to a mainstream visa, please reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com. Alternatively, we can be contacted on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com

A business visa may be issued to a foreigner intending to establish or invest into a business in South Africa where he or she will be involved in the day-to-day operations of the company. Upon first application for a business visa, the prospective business owner needs to submit an undertaking (unless is an existing business) ensuring that the business will be registered with the following stakeholder departments - Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) South African Revenue Services (SARS) Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) An undertaking to ensure that at least 60% of the total staff compliment will be South African citizens or permanent residence holders must be submitted as part of the application. The company has one (1) year to fulfill this undertaking. It is absolutely imperative to obtain a positive letter of recommendation from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) in support of the business visa application. When it comes to investment, a registered Chartered Accountant (CA) or a registered professional accountant must confirm, in writing, that at least R5 million in cash is available to be invested or at least an amount in cash and capital contributions are available to be invested into the book value of the business. The Director-General may reduce or waive the financial or capital contribution for businesses which fall within the national interest as outlined in the Government Gazette ie. the business must be classified as a desirable business. A business visa may be issued for a maximum period of three (3) years at a time. To know more about the business visa process, reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com .  Alternatively, you may contact us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com

To anyone who thought the backlog, which the Department of Home Affairs is currently experiencing, will clear soon - sadly we have some bad news. Although South African visa applications are being finalized, most applicants who submitted their application within South Africa early to mid 2022, are still awaiting outcomes of their visa applications. The Department endeavors to clear the backlog by mid-June 2024. We can only hope that the backlog will be cleared soon, but even more so, that applications are correctly adjudicated. Based on the above, we still strongly recommend that applicants submit their long-term visa applications in their home countries or where they hold long-term and valid residence. By doing so, they will experience a faster processing time by the South African mission and will most likely have better and easier access to the Consular sections as well. Please feel free to reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com or alternatively contact us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com We look forward to having a chat with you!

What is Proof of Permanent Residence or Proof of PR (POP) and the importance of it? This is a question we get asked often. Proof of PR applications are for the purpose of verifying a Permanent Residence holders' status in the Republic of South Africa. Lost Original Permanent Residence Certificate: This is an application which can be submitted if an individual lost his or her original Permanent Residence Certificate. As per condition of Home Affairs and stipulated on the PR Certificate, such a certificate only gets issued once and must be safeguarded at all times. The Department does not reissue a new certificate again. Upon the successful finalization of a POP application, a confirmation letter from the Department of Home Affairs will be issued, confirming the validity of the individual's residence status in South Africa. Citizenship applications: If an individual intends on applying for South African Citizenship via Naturalization, he or she must first apply for Proof of PR via the VFS office and obtain this confirmation from the Department of Home Affairs as part of the requirements. Permanent Residence status / ID book for a long time: Often individuals, who are in possession of a permanent residence status or Non-SA Citizen ID book for many years, are requested by immigration officials at airports to do a Proof of PR application in order to check if their status is still valid. We often pin this request to the fact that someone might have stayed out of South Africa for three (3) continuous years. A Proof of PR application must be submitted, in person, at the VFS office. Typical documents to submit are the following - Copy of current and previous passport (with PR endorsement, if applicable) Copy of Permanent Residence Permit issued by Home Affairs Copy of SA ID book, if applicable Proof that relevant compliance with conditions were met (whichever conditions were stipulated on the PR Certificate Completed online VFS application form Proof of payment made Any other relevant supporting documents that you wish to submit Should you have any other questions regarding the process of Proof of Permanent Residence (POP), feel free to reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com . Alternatively, please contact us on sue@movingsouthimmigration.com or +2773 5357 534. We look forward to hearing from you.

Applicants who obtained their qualifications abroad and wish to apply for either a critical skills work visa or a general work visa for South Africa must have these qualifications evaluated by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA). The primary purpose of SAQA is to assess these qualifications and determine their equivalence to the nearest South African National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level. Obtaining a SAQA certificate is a crucial requirement for both visa applications. While it is possible to request a waiver from the Department of Home Affairs for the SAQA evaluation requirement when applying for a general work visa, this requirement remains mandatory for a critical skills work visa application. Moreover, we advise holders of older SAQA certificates to be vigilant regarding the serial number on their certificates. This serial number is displayed in three locations on the certificate: the top right, bottom left, and bottom right. Notably, the serial number at the bottom right is issued in a different, dotted format. We strongly urge applicants to submit clear, colour-certified copies of this document, ensuring the legibility of all details, particularly the dotted serial number, when lodging visa applications within South Africa. Failure to provide a legible dotted serial number may result in the rejection of the visa application. We understand that this requirement might seem complex, but ensuring clarity and accuracy in your documentation is crucial for a successful application process. By adhering to these guidelines and ensuring all documentation is in order, applicants can avoid unnecessary delays and increase their chances of obtaining their desired visa. Should you require any further information on this particular topic, or the SAQA process, please reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com. Alternatively, you may contact us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimigration.com We look forward to having a chat with you!

Newly appointment Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, and in one of his first acts in office, once again, extended the blanket waiver to applicants who are currently awaiting the outcomes of their submitted long-term visa, appeal or waiver applications. According to the Minister's statement, the department cut through 92 886 applications out of a total of 306,042 applications. The Minister also stated that the department needs to do more as the clearing of his massive backlog is the only way to avoid another extension of the concession on visa, appeal as well as waiver application - quite a big mountain of work ahead for adjudicators. Applicants who submitted their long-term visa, waiver or appeal applications prior to 30 June 2024, are now covered until 31 December 2024. This means applicants may travel, if required, from South Africa between now until 31 December 2024 on expired visas without being declared undesirable. They will be required, however, to present their original VFS receipts upon their departure from and entry into South Africa. Visa exempt nationals may simply enter South Africa again on their usual 30-90 day visas to collect the outcomes of their visa applications. However, unfortunately for nationals from visa-restricted countries, this is not the case. They must apply for and obtain a port of entry visa in order to be re-admitted into South Africa. Although this is somewhat a relief for applicants who are still waiting on their outcomes, we know first prize will always be to receive the visa outcome. It is important to note that this blanket waiver ONLY covers applicants who submitted their visa, appeal and waiver applications within South Africa and who have been legally admitted into the country. Upon publishing of this article, the signed blanket waiver has not yet been Gazetted, but we are hoping to receive this soon. Please feel free to reach out to us via our contact form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com  to discuss. Alternatively, you may contact us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com

On 03 July 2024, Dr Leon Schreiber from the Democratic Alliance has been sworn in as the new Minister of Home Affairs. This change comes after South Africa formed a Government of National Unity (GNU) - a first for our country. Since obtaining his PhD in Political Science, Dr Leon Schreiber racked up an impressive and solid background in policy development as well as public administration and has become known as an individual tackling the bull by the horns when it comes to governmental issues. Although our new Minister has his work cut out for him, we are truly excited to see what he and his new administration has to offer. If he means anything with the words and we quote 'getting the basics right' as well as 'this department is fundamentally about human dignity, which has been infringed upon by the failures we have seen', we will see a complete shift on intentions of improving efficiency in service delivery as well as better communication with applicants. We look forward to seeing changes being implemented for the better and whilst we acknowledge that South Africa will likely first take a dip before real recovery in the immigration and civic services sectors can happen, we are still very excited! Should you wish to have a chat with us regarding how your immigration process might likely be affected, kindly contact us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com . Alternatively, we can be contacted on sue@movingsouthimmigration.com or +2773 5357 534.

South African Immigration Regulations advise applicants to submit their visa applications, when lodged within South Africa, no less than sixty (60) days prior to the expiry date of their visa and no less than seven (7) days if the visa was issued for thirty (30) days. It seems that the Department of Home Affairs has gone back to the drawing board and is now rejecting applications if applicants did not do so. If you find yourself too late to lodge an application within these timely parameters, obtain an affidavit or letter explaining why the application is late and being submitted within the 60- or 7-day period. Please ensure these are good and valid reasons on why the application is late. For more information regarding visa applications for South Africa, please contact us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com. Alternatively, you may reach us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com We look forward to hearing from you.

As from beginning March 2023, the VFS office has changed to PayU as their payment vendor for online payments. A further change is that applicants will no longer receive an email as proof of payment when payment is made via online or card payments. The VFS appointment letter which you receive after payment is made and appointment scheduled, will be accepted as confirmation of payment. It is the usual document which reflects the appointment date and time as well as the relevant payment details. The VFS appointment letter will be emailed to your email address and is also downloadable from your profile, together with your application form and checklist. Should you require any further information about these changed payment processes, please contact us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com. Alternatively, we can be reached on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com

The Department of Home Affairs decided to extend its blanket waiver to applicants who are currently awaiting their outcomes of submitted long-term visa and waiver applications. The surprising factor at play is that the blanket waiver has been extended for a further nine (9) months as opposed to the previous six (6) months. These individuals are now covered until 31 December 2023. This further means applicants may travel, if required, from South Africa between now until 31 December 2023 on expired visas without being declared undesirable. A reminder though, that applicants will be required to present their original VFS receipt upon their departure from and entry into South Africa. Visa exempt nationals may simply enter South Africa again on their usual 30-90 day visas to collect the outcomes of their visa applications. Unfortunately, nationals from visa-restricted countries must apply for and obtain a port of entry visa in order to be re-admitted into South Africa. Shocking news is that short-term visa applicants, who have not received their extension outcomes until 31 March 2023, would have until 30 April 2023 to leave South Africa without being declared undesirable. It is important to note that this blanket waiver ONLY covers applicants who submitted their long-term visa and waiver applications within South Africa and who have been legally admitted into the country. Please feel free to reach out to us via our contact form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com to discuss. Alternatively, you may contact us on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com .

We have received the disappointing confirmation that ZEP holders are not included in the newly extended blanket waiver. The Department of Home Affairs extended its blanket waiver until 31 December 2023, allowing applicants of pending long-term visa and waiver applications to remain in South Africa or travel out of South Africa without being declared undesirable. It is with the explanation that ZEP holders are already on their own dispensation programme until 30 June 2023, hence the exclusion from the blanket waiver. The question remains - what if a waiver application has not been finalized by 30 June 2023 or such an application was denied with little time to spare? We guess time will tell. For further information regarding the blanket waiver, please reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com. We may also be contacted on +2773 5357 534 or sue@movingsouthimmigration.com

On 11 April 2023, the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, waived the following requirements for temporary and permanent residence applications - Radiological Reports: Previously a radiological report needed to be obtained to show proof that the applicants' lungs were clear of tuberculosis (TB). This report had to be submitted in original form and could not be older than six (6) months on the day of submission. In some cases, this became a health concern for some as they were of the opinion that too many x-rays could cause cancer. To confirm - a medical certificate must still be obtained from a general practitioner. Police clearance certificates: As per Immigration law, police clearances had to be submitted from every country where the applicant resided for 12 months or longer since his or her 18th birthday. This is still the case, except now, the applicant must only submit a police clearance from countries where he or she resided 12 months and longer for the last five (5) years. This change means if you resided in South Africa for the last 5 or 6 years, you are only required to submit a South African police clearance. NO police clearance from your country of origin would be required as this would have accompanied your first long-term visa application. Police clearance requirements also brought some concern to those who simply could not obtain a police clearance from a country where they (maybe) resided 30 years ago or needed a certain document to apply of which they completely lost. The conditions of this new directive are effective from 11 April 2023. Our advice would be to add a copy of said directive to the visa application just to be safe. Lastly, as the directive also addresses Consular Sections and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), the same is applicable to all South African missions abroad and not just the VFS offices in South Africa. Should you require any further information about this new directive, please reach out to us via our Contact Form on www.movingsouthimmigration.com or via telephone / email on +2773 5357 534 and sue@movingsouthimmigration.com