If you are a Human Resources Manager for a large international company then you most probably will know what it means to apply for a work permit for one (or more) of your international staff members (and their families), coming from abroad to work at your firm for a certain period of time.
You will also know that it is – to say the least – a nightmare to get assistance from the South African Department of Home Affairs (DHA), which is unfortunately the only issuing authority in SA. The nightmare unfortunately continues, especially when you need to find out how and where to submit work permit applications for your foreign staff.
New Legislation:
New legislation that was recently passed by Government prohibits third parties to submit and follow up on any application that was submitted with the DHA on behalf of a client. This new legislation was not received well at all within the immigration and corporate sector, as it goes against our constitution which clearly states that anyone has the right to be represented.
This means that even Practitioners as well as Attorneys will no longer be allowed to have power of attorney on any application, which means that the applicants will henceforth be required to submit their own applications at the DHA as well as follow up on their applications for the outcome of it.
The DHA is aiming to follow in the footsteps of Australia as well as the UK where they require applicants to apply for the correct permit BEFORE entering SA. This also means that they will only take in new applications in SA in exceptional circumstances.
So if you entered SA on a business visa – for a look see for instance – and you decide to take the position at the new company in SA, you would have to exit SA and apply for the correct work permit from the SA Embassy in your home country, and then return to SA to start your new appointment with your new work permit.
The DHA always has huge backlogs, and to make matters worst, they moved their processing centre in December 2011. Any application submitted in SA can take between 6 and 8 months to be processed, which poses a huge problem far any Expat wanting to start work, open bank accounts, or just to get his container in from customs.
author:
Henry Harper
Hassle Free Immigration cc
Tel: +2711 431 1705
Fax: +2711 388 0940
Web: www.hasslefree.co.za
Having said all that and outlining the pitfalls for work permits for SA, there is luckily a light at the end of the tunnel (and it’s not a train…)
Enter Hassle Free Immigration (HFI).
Our name really says it all. With 10 years + immigration experience we’ve seen and encountered all the variations you can get in this field.
