Applying for Critical Skills Work Visa for South Africa

The critical skills work visa was a very welcome addition, in June 2014, to the types of work visas that a prospective immigrant may consider to apply for.

Below we take you through the process and criteria associated with applying for a critical skills work permit.

The critical skills list

Applications can only be made by those who feature on the critical skills list. To view whether your occupation is on the current critical skills list see here.

Where to apply for a critical skills work visa

Applications that are made for a critical skills work visa that involve a change of status, for example from a short term tourist visa of 90 days to work visa, must be made from outside of South Africa.
Where an application is made by an individual, who is already in possession of an appropriate residency visa, for example a critical skills work visa holder seeking to renew their visa, can be made in South Africa.

Requirements within the application

All the normal requirements that accompany a temporary visa application such a good standing, medical and the appropriate application form must be complied with. In addition applications for the critical skills visa carry with them a number of further items.

When applying for a critical skills work visa the applicant will need to show that they fall within the critical skills category they are making their application under. This includes:

A certificate from the professional body, council or board recognised by SAQA or any relevant government Department confirming the skills or qualifications of the applicant.
An evaluation of the foreign qualification by SAQA and translated by a sworn translator into one of the official languages of South Africa.
Proof of their application for registration with the professional body, council or board.

As the critical skills visa is a work visa, there are also various requirements within the application that the employer needs to commit to:

A written undertaking accepting responsibility for the costs related to the deportation of the applicant and his or her dependent family members, should it become necessary.
A written undertaking by the employer to ensure that the passport of their employee is valid at all times for the duration of his or her employment

Need more guidance on applying for a critical skills work visa?

Any application for immigration can be complex and hard to understand. There is of course a burden of proof required within the application to clearly demonstrate that the applicant meets the criteria as laid down in the Immigration Act.

Assessing your eligibility, compiling your application and dealing with the Department of Home Affairs may all seem very technical and burdensome, that’s why we are here.

With a track record of over 6000 successful applications and a much envied client first philosophy, our role is to be with you every step of the way throughout your critical skills visa application.