South African companies have been hit with another blow as the massive work visa backlog has deteriorated even further. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
South Africa faces a critical skills vacuum, and hiring international workers has often been cited as a short- and medium-term way to tackle the issue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, businesses struggle to get work visas for international workers due to long wait times and a complex application process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking at Xpatweb’s Global Mobility Breakfast, Acting Chief Director of Permits Phindiwe Mbhele said the Department of Home Affairs (DHA’s) backlog has now increased to over 74,000. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is a large increase from the backlog of over 60,000 flagged by the department last year. The department previously said that it was expecting to clear the backlog by mid-2024 at the earliest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite a backlog eradication project, Mbhele admitted that the number of outstanding permits is increasing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n That said, Xpatweb Managing Director of Xpatweb Marissa Jacobs noted that there has been a vast improvement in the issuing time of visas and that many corporate employers and international employees are satisfied with the results. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, she stressed that there is a much higher first-time rejection rate of work visa applications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Xpatweb said that many of these applications are rejected for unlawful reasons, with applications then having to go through an appeal process. This results in a huge backlog of appeals at the DHA, leading to further delays. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, Mbhele argued that the rejection rate has only slightly increased from below 25% to 26%. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Possible relief on the cards <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Although President Cyril Ramaphosa said there would be significant changes to immigration policies to attract foreign workers during the 2023 SONA, very little has been achieved. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The changes will include more streamlined application requirements, a more flexible points-based system, and the highly-anticipated Trusted Employer Scheme, which will directly help large businesses bring talent into South Africa by supplying trusted employers with a predictable migration approach. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Although the DHA said that it would go ahead with new visas in April, it stressed that the full implementation is still years away<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Jacobs said that she was \u201ctentatively optimistic\u201d that these new policies could help bring in international talent – minimising South Africa’s critical skills crisis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAn update on, or insights into, the status of these amendments would go a long way toward easing the concerns of many South African businesses,\u201d Xpatweb said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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