In 2014, South Africa introduced new immigration legislation. Some of the changes were made to attract skilled foreigners to South Africa in industries where it’s needed and to improve the visa and permit application processes.
One such change was the withdrawal of the exceptional skills work permit for South Africa. This permit bridged the gap between a quote work permit and a general work permit, but the critical skills visa that was introduced does this an even better job of it.
It is important to note that the quota work permit was also withdrawn in 2014, but again, the critical skills visa more than replaces the quota work permit. For instance, foreign employees working in South Africa on a critical skills visa are free to move between employers. In essence, it makes them equal to South African permanent residents and citizens when it comes to quitting jobs and applying for new positions.
The employer benefit from this specific change because it puts much less obligation on them. This is just one benefit of a critical skills visa, though. To learn more about the rest, you can read our information on critical skills visas.
As the exceptional skills work permit for South Africa is no longer in existence, employees currently employed on this visa cannot extend it once it expires. This means such employees must apply for another visa to stay in your employment.
Let Intergate help you with your visa needs
To find out more about how Intergate can assist your business, please contact us on +27 (0) 21 424 2460 to speak with one of our corporate client managers.
If you’d prefer it if we call you instead, why don’t you request a free call back? As soon as we have your contact details, one of our client managers will endeavour to contact you within 24 hours to discuss your needs.
Rest assured that you are indeed in good hands. Our consultants have all been registered with the Department of Home Affairs and Intergate is the only immigration company in South Africa with ISO 9001 certification. This means we underwent stringent quality tests and passed with flying colours.
