Critical Skills Work Visa

By possessing valuable skills, experience and sought-after academic qualifications on South Africa’s critical skills list – you may qualify for a critical skills work visa. Going about the application for your critical skills work visa can be quite a lengthy and drawn-out process. June Luna Immigration Attorneys have the means to simplify this process.

A shortage of skills can be an unwelcome reality for the South African workforce, with many job opportunities unattainable due to the lack of relevant skills/education required. This is when employers have the ability to employ someone from another country to fill in the gaps. This proposition allows sought-after foreign employees to apply for a critical skills work visa. A critical skills work visa is valid for a maximum of 5 years. With the appropriate amount of work experience in a specific category, you can also make an application for permanent residency.

Before the February 2022 update, applicants must fall within a category relevant to the most recent rendition of the Critical Skills list. This would require applicants to have the relevant experience and tertiary qualifications required to fulfil the skill gap. This entails enlisting a professional body to confirm their skill and retain a resume approved by an independent body and the job on offer. However, it was not necessary to have a contract of employment – you could obtain a visa for up to 12 months to look for employment in your specific field.

Due to recent alterations made to the critical skills list, as well as the policies surrounding the critical skills work visa, it is important to consider the following. It is now imperative to have a contract of employment, where previously it was not necessary. The requirement of a post-graduate degree (or higher) is actively present for most positions. In terms of corporate general management positions, specific sectors and the size of the business play a big role in dictating who is eligible for the position. Doctors and other professionals have outright been removed from the list. In this case, if your skill has been removed from the list, you will need to register yourself under a new skill – thus allowing you to make a new application for temporary residency and consider making an application for permanent residency.

If your application for permanent residency was submitted before the changes made to the critical skills list, your application must be considered in terms of the old list. If for some reason it is adjudicated according to the wrong critical skills list, we can assist you with an appeal to have the decision overturned.

JLIA strives to help foreign citizens settle down in the beautiful land of South Africa. With determination, knowledge and with all means necessary, June Luna and her team of immigration experts can help you overcome the uphill battle of attaining permanent residency in South Africa.