How To Get A Life Partner Visa Work Endorsement
Did you know that a life partner visa holder can apply for a work endorsement to legally work in South Africa?
If you were not aware then we suggest that you read the entire blog post to find out how you can add this working right to your visa.
The Department of Home Affairs has made provision for South African citizens or permanent resident spouse’s to earn an income whilst residing in South Africa.
You are anxious and want to get settled, we understand that you probably stressing out right now but we prepared all the information you need.
Before we get started let’s define what a life partner visa for South Africa is…
The life partner visa allows a foreign national to stay with their South African or permanent resident partner in the country.
This is one of the temporary residence permit / visa options for South Africa.
Applying for a life partner visa renewal for South Africa and adding an endorsement can be time-consuming if you don’t have the time.
If you do not qualify for the visa, then these are the different South Africa visa types.
You can fill out our contact form if you require our immigration service.
Why Should You Apply For An Endorsement?
- You can earn an income for yourself and you are not dependent on your partner where finances are concerned.
- Applying for the working rights is much easier than applying for a work visa in South Africa.
- You can gain valuable experience and work yourself up the corporate ladder.
Applying for working rights as opposed to applying for a work visa is a much simpler and straightforward process.
The employment visa route is complex and there are many hoops you need to jump through to get to the goal post.
The Disadvantages of a Work Visa will be daunting and confusing to the point of you trying to pull your hair out:
- Your prospective employer needs to prove that they have exhausted all avenues in first trying to find a South African citizen or permanent resident before offering you the job.
- Your qualifications need to be assessed by the South African Qualifications Assessment company (SAQA) to verify qualifications.
- Certain employment visas require you to register your profession with a professional body, council or board.
- Prospective employers have to undertake certain responsibilities for you.
So we advise that you go the easier route and apply for the working rights.
If you have a spousal visa, then you can get a work endorsement on a spousal visa in South Africa.
What Endorsements Are Available to you?
The life partner holder can apply for one of the following options:
- Business Endorsement
- Study Endorsement
- Working Endorsements
The applicant can only pick one option to be added to the visa as the Department of Home Affairs won’t allow multiple options.
The life partner visa falls under the relative’s visa but when you add these, you are technically submitting for an extended visitors visa with working rights.
the holder of this visa without any rights may not engage in any employment activities, study or start a business.
You must submit a visa application to have this added and if not you can end up in trouble.
Your employer will be fined a hefty sum of money or could face imprisonment for up to 12 months.
How to Add a Life Partner Permit Work Endorsement
The disadvantage of adding the rights to your permit is that you need to submit a fresh application from scratch again.
So all the documents you submitted previously must be used to compile the application again.
We understand that this seems troublesome but unfortunately, this is the requirement of the Department of Home Affairs.
Therefore we recommend that if you can prove that you have been in a relationship with your partner for more than 5 years, then you can apply for permanent residence.
The advantage of permanent residency is you do not have to extend your permit every time before it expires.
The permanent residence permit for South Africa is indefinite and will only lapse if you are absent from the country for more than 3 years.
Documents needed for the Working Rights
- Contract of employment.
This is the only document you need to add to your visa application when submitting it.
The rest of the documents you need are the same documents you used when submitting the first time around.
The Validity of the Working Rights
The working rights attached to the visa hold the same validity as the visa itself.
The life partner visa is valid for 2 years and so automatically the rights expire when your visa expires.
This is renewed when you re-apply for the visa again and you’ll need to resubmit the same documents for the rights again.
To keep yourself legal, you need to extend your visa before it expires otherwise you might end up being deported from the country and never allowed to come back again.
Can I Change Jobs With Working Rights
In most cases, the Department of Home Affairs will print the employer’s name on the visa sticker.
This means that you are not allowed to work for another employer as your visa is strictly made out to work for the original employer printed on the visa.
You would need to reapply for new work rights so that your new employer’s details are reflected on the new visa sticker.
If you are found guilty of working for a new employer with your ex-employer details, then you and your current employer will end up in hot water for that.
Migrate With Q can Assist you
If you need assistance with a South African visa, we are more than happy to assist you. We offer a free assessment before taking you on as a client and we create a tailored made immigration strategy for you.
We can assist you with a business visa, study visa and any other type of alternative visa.
Get started with your application today.
Charl Vollmer has 8 years of experience helping people immigrate to South Africa. I am passionate about helping people and making their dreams a reality. Charl constantly stays up to date with South African Immigration rules and regulations. To contact Charl, visit our contact page.