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bi-monthly
HPASA newsletter. |
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Immigration
Consultants In South Africa |
IBN Consulting
are a reputable team of professionals
who work with HPASA
as our chosen immigration consultants in South Africa.
Any and all queries relating to the immigration process
and the implications thereto can be directed to IBN
Consulting at any time. Feel free to get
in touch with IBN here.
IBN Consulting & Immigration offer integrated,
comprehensive, multi-sector assistance and
practical advice for any business activity in South
Africa. Whether your needs be for work permits in South
Africa, or simple advice; IBN Consulting can assist
you with the utmost efficiency, integrity and transparency.
For more than 10 years, IBN Consulting has been forging
the path as one of the leading group of immigration
consultants in South Africa, but have also
complemented their repertoire with international experience
of many years.
Subscribe
to our newsletter so you can stay up to date with
the latest in the hospitality industry, including regular
updates from IBN Consulting.
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April 2013
FOREIGN EMPLOYEE PERMITS.
WHICH IS APPLICABLE?
By Andreas Kensel, Managing Director,
IBN Business & Immigration |
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Andreas
Kensel, MD
IBN Business
& Immigration |
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IBN
often gets enquiries
from Hotels or even
Game Farms who wish
to employ a foreigner
for a certain position.
Often these might
be specialist cooks
or have experience
in international
top hotels.
For
such possible candidates
the Immigration
Law offers three
options:
• The Intra
Company Transfer
permit,
•
the exceptional
skills permit and
• the
general work permit.
The
Intra Company permit
The Intra Company
Transfer permit
is only possible
for corporations
who are subsidiaries
of international
hotel chains. This
permit is designed
for multinationals
who wish to send
their employees
for a certain period
to their South African
branch.
The requirements
for these permits
are less onerous
than in the other
categories and therefore
the preferred choice
for the employer.
However, a lot of
local Game Farms
or Hotels are not
part of an international
structure. |
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December/January 2013
QUO VADIS HOME AFFAIRS?
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Stellenbosch |
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With
the former Minister
of Home Affairs,
Ms Dlamini-Zuma,
taking up the position
as Head of the African
Union in faraway
Ethiopia, President
Zuma appointed Mrs
Naledi Pandor as
her successor.
Pandor has been
a cabinet member
before. As Minister
of Science and Technology
she was committed
and successful in
bringing the Square
Kilometer Array
(SKA) Telescope
to South Africa.
During the lobbying
process she travelled
extensively overseas
and we are confident
that she learned
about the importance
of attracting international
investors to our
country and sourcing
necessary skills
to keep South Africa
internationally
competitive.
Most people will
agree that Home
Affairs has improved
its services to
its South African
citizens. A new
passport can now
be issued within
a week, although
visas are still
required for UK
travel, partly leading
to SAA cancelling
its direct flights
from Cape Town to
Heathrow. |
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Dirk
Meissner
IBN Consulting
& Immigration |
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ID Books can be issued
quickly as well, provided
that the applicant is
on the national database.
Cleaning up this database
has been a priority for
the former Minister, and
we can expect card-sized,
smart ID’s to be
rolled out soon, also
serving as a source for
any social grants in future.
This should ease the administrative
burden in the future.
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August 2012
SIGNS OF IMPROVEMENTS
WITHIN THE DHA
By Andreas Krensel, Managing Director,
IBN Consulting & Immigration |
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IBN recently
had an appointment
with a senior
adjudicator at
the Department
of Home Affairs
Head Office (DHA)
to submit copies
of long overdue
Permanent Residence
applications.
The public is
not permitted
access to this
building to avoid
possible “influence”.
However our needs
were to submit
copies of approximately
25 applications,
which we feared
had been lost
in the system,
most of them pending
for at least 2
years and numerous
follow ups had
brought no result
thus far.
Home Affairs is
aware of its problems
and two weeks
after our visit,
some of the applicants
had been contacted.
So maybe someone
at DHA is taking
responsibility
for these applications.
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April 2012
HOME AFFAIRS AND ITS
PROMISES
By Andreas Krensel, Managing Director,
IBN Consulting & Immigration |
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Recently we were
witness to some interesting
news that the Director
General of the Department
of Home Affairs, Mr Mkuseli
Apleni, delivered to the
parliamentary portfolio
committee on Home Affairs.
Backlog
It has been promised
that the backlog
of all temporary
residence permits
would be cleared
by end April 2012.
This is surprising
since, at IBN alone,
we have several
applications outstanding
from 2011 that nobody
seems to be attending
to.
Surprisingly, it
does seem hopeful
that the processing
times for applications
submitted this year
have been reduced
with results received
within 40 days after
submission. |
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Misplaced?
However, numerous applications
submitted in 2011 seem
to have been affected
by the move of Home Affairs
Head Office from Waltloo
(east of Pretoria) to
the Hallmark building
in Pretoria city centre,
and by affected, I mean
lost or misplaced and
nobody seems to be interested
in taking up these older
cases. |
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October 2011
SA IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENTS
STEP UP THEIR GAME
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Consulting
& Immigration |
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We have
noted recently that certain
processes have become
more formal and strict.
While it feels, at times,
as if this is new red
tape, it is merely the
current laws being put
into practice. Maybe we
had it too easy before.
Various Sectors
The strict protocols apply
to various sectors pertinent
to investors, such as
the South African Revenue
Services (SARS), the South
African Reserve Bank (SARB),
the Registrar of Companies
and the Department of
Home Affairs.
Accountability,
Reliability, Predictability
While the implementation
of the current laws can
cause delays and frustration,
the reason behind the
drive to formalisation
is to counter any personal
influence-making on government
officials – corruption
- and to achieve quality
and performance standards,
ultimately leading to
accountability, reliability
and predictability. |
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Dirk
Meissner
IBN Consulting &
Immigration |
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August 2011
IMMIGRATION EXPERTS
ACHIEVE POSITIVE OUTCOMES
By Andreas Krensel, Managing Director,
IBN Consulting & Immigration |
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Despite all the justifiable
complaints towards the current
state of the Department of Home
Affairs, there is also several
good immigration stories that
come out of having experts assist
in the immigration process.
THE SWISS FAMILY
A Swiss family approached us
in May 2011 intending to purchase
a farm in the Eastern Cape in
order to open a Guesthouse,
a Conference Centre and a Mountain
Bike Park. An appointment was
set up in June whilst the family
were visiting Cape Town prior
to travelling to the Eastern
Cape to look for suitable properties. |
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June 2011
IMMIGRATION AMENDMENT
ACT - MINIMAL IMPACT ON HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Consulting
and Immigration |
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Although the
Immigration Amendment Act is
still not formally in place
and a great level of uncertainty
remains, in this article we
would like to focus on changes
relevant to the tourism and
hospitality industry. The latest
estimates are that the President
will sign the new Immigration
Amendment Act into law within
the next 2 months.
Investing in Sectors
of National Interest
Investors will only be welcome
if they invest into sectors
of national interest. We understand
that the South African government
fully appreciates tourism as
one of the biggest contributors
to economic stability in the
country; we are therefore optimistic
that there will be no negative
consequences for any foreign
investor wishing to apply for
a Business Permit. |
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Increased Investment
However, the minimum investment by
a foreigner, according to the current
draft version, must now be at least
R2.5 million. If the investment includes
a business property, this is typically
not an issue, but it becomes problematic
if there are more partners involved
and the investment is split between
them. |
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April 2011
IMMIGRATION AMENDMENT
ACT PASSED BY PARLIAMENT
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Consulting and Immigration |
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Dirk
Meissner,
IBN Consulting and Immigration |
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For the last
6 months experts debated the
controversial Immigration Amendment
Act (IAA) proposed by the South
African Department of Home Affairs
(DHA). In spite of heavy protest,
from refugee organisations to
business associations and law
firms, the ANC majority pushed
the amendments through Parliament
at the end of March 2011.
The IAA still needs to
pass the National Council of
Provinces, and get signed by
President Zuma, before it can
be gazetted. We expect various
legal action against the new
law, especially once the Immigration
Regulations are published, which
will give more operational detail
on what foreigners can expect
to deal with in future when
wishing to immigrate to South
Africa.
Concerns
There are a number of concerns
in our opinion. South Africa
has one of the highest numbers
of immigrants in the world,
mainly from other African countries,
who want to live in the powerhouse
of the African continent. However,
there is a lack of greater vision
on who we want in the country
and in what numbers. |
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February/March 2011
PERMANENT RESIDENCY
- ON WHAT GROUNDS CAN I OBTAIN IT?
By Andreas Krensel, Managing Director, IBN
Consulting & Immigration |
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Permanent
Residency (PR) is the status
most foreigners who decided
to stay in South Africa aim
for. It does not only offer
security for future planning
but also a certain level of
flexibility at a later stage.
The current legislation allows
for foreigners to apply for
permanent residence on the following
grounds:
1. Own business:
If an investor has invested
more than R2.5 million into
the book value of the business
and has employed as least 5
locals, he/she will qualify
for permanent residence based
on own business.
2.
Five year work permit:
If the foreigner has worked
for more than 5 years in South
Africa and was in possession
of work permits for these 5
years, she/he may apply for
direct residence. In addition
he or she must be in possession
of an offer of permanent employment
at the moment of application
for the direct residence. |
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December/January 2011
CORPORATE PERMITS -
BULK EMPLOYMENT MADE EASY
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Consulting
and Immigration |
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The Immigration
Act of 2002 introduced “Corporate
Permits” as a new way
of easing the facilitation of
insufficient and scarce skills
into South Africa.
Call Centres
This type of permit is very
popular with call centres like
Lufthansa, Swiss, Amazon, etc.
A “large account unit”
has been set up for assistance
within Home Affair’s head
office in Pretoria and is proving
to be competent and helpful. |
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Hospitality Corporate
Permits
A Corporate Permit can be very attractive
for the hospitality industry as staff
turnover is often higher than in other
sectors and foreign skills are regularly
needed to complement local staff,
particularly during high season. |
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October 2010
BUSINESS PERMITS
By Dirk Meissner, IBN Consulting
and Immigration |
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Any
foreign, direct investor wishing to
run a business in the tourism and
hospitality industry in South Africa
is, in principle, welcomed by the
government.
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Foreign
Investment
The South African government
is well aware of the importance
of foreign investment as well
as job creation in this sector
as all their official policies
engage investors facilitating
tourism into the country.
Immigration Requirements
The Department of Home Affairs
(DHA) has defined the requirements
to obtain a business in the
Immigration Act of 2002, which
has been unchanged since July
2005. Amendments are in the
pipeline and we will advise
on any changes when the become
law. |
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August 2010
PERMIT PROCESSING IMPROVEMENTS AT HOME AFFAIRS
By Dirk Meissner at IBN Consulting
& Immigration |
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As many of
you are aware, Permanent Residence
applications are centrally processed
at Home Affair’s head
office in Pretoria.
Inconsistent and
Unpredictable
This process, whereby the applications
are handed in at a regional
office, was introduced in June
2005 and initially caused many
frustrations. In effect, the
processing time doubled from
1 year to 2 years. Also, many
applications were lost in the
post or delayed in the regional
office, resulting in an inconsistent
and unpredictable processing
timeframe, ranging anything
from 6 to 8 weeks. |
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RECRUITMENT
– MUCH MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
Recruitment is all about human dynamics,
and as such is a challenging and exciting
game. |
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Look Out
Like all relationships, it can
be fraught with pitfalls, but
knowing what to look out for
can make life a lot easier and
painless for all parties involved.
This is where a recruitment
agent’s expertise comes
in.
Matching
Requirements
A recruitment agent works closely
with both the employer and selected
candidates. Extreme care is
taken to match the experience
and abilities of an individual
to the job requirements of a
particular position.
Mutually Beneficial
The agent has a responsibility
to ensure that the needs and
expectations of both the employer
and candidate are met; only
in this way can a successful,
mutually beneficial relationship
be guaranteed. |
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| FOREIGN
INVESTMENT - IMMIGRATION MATTERS |
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South Africa has proved
to be a very popular investment not only
for South Africans but also for many foreigners.
A particular focus has been the tourism
and hospitality industry.
Permission
All foreigners who wish to stay in South
Africa require permission to do so by the
Department of Home Affairs. In case of a
business such as running a boutique hotel,
guesthouse, B&B or a restaurant a
business permit is normally the best option. |
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| WORK
PERMITS FOR FOREIGNERS IN THE HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY |
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The hospitality
industry is continually improving
service standards and in this
context it is always interesting
for hotels, restaurants or other
business in the hospitality
service to have input from abroad,
for example from Europe.
European
Flavour
If you succeed in recruiting
a person from perhaps
one of the renowned European
hotel schools or a person
from abroad with provable
and extensive hospitality
experience, then this
knowledge transfer and
heightened motivation
are guaranteed in your
business. |
Foreigner Shy
Often businesses shy away from
employing foreigners as they
are unsure about the legal options
of employing a foreigner and
unsure of the process, but seeking
assistance from experts can
make this an easy and worthwhile
process. |
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