For skilled foreigners in particular, the Department of Employment and Labour in South Africa has highlighted eight important professions that are most impacted by skills shortages.
During a recent parliamentary Q&A session, Minister of Employment and Labour Thulas Nxesi was questioned regarding essential qualities that the Republic of South Africa was looking for in migrants.
The minister responded by acknowledging that, like many other nations, South Africa faces a shortage of essential skills in certain job sectors where employers find it difficult to locate candidates with the necessary training or experience..
According to him, Nxesi highlighted that the Department of Higher Education and Training spearheads the research process for compiling and publishing the National Scarce Skills List, encouraging public input through comments.
“The National Development Plan, the National Infrastructure Plan, Industrial Policy Action Plan and the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) Scarce Skills Lists indicate shortages in certain career fields and are used to determine the needed skills”.
“One of the alternatives of deploying these skills in the labour market is to source them from foreign nationals,” he said.
The department states that, according to pertinent research, the professions in South Africa most significantly impacted by skills shortages are the ones needing skilled migrants.
Here are the 8 professions needing skilled immigrants:
Information Technology
Business and Management
Design
Engineering
Financial Sectors
Marketing
Medical and Health
Arts and Media
Nxesi pointed out that these skills align with the Department of Home Affairs’ Scarce Skills List, enabling foreigners to secure corporate or individual work visas when employed in South Africa.
Eligibility for South Africa’s work visa
The minister emphasized that for visa eligibility, employers must present evidence demonstrating the unavailability of a South African citizen with equivalent qualifications or experience in the relevant category – a situation often observed in the above-mentioned professions.
He highlighted that the department provides recommendations to Home Affairs during the processing of corporate and individual work visas, assessing the availability of such skills in the country on behalf of employers.
Shortcomings
Despite these efforts, employers in South Africa face a substantial challenge due to the extensive backlog at Home Affairs in processing these visas.
Reports indicate that visa applications can take up to 48 weeks for approval, posing a threat to expansion plans, investment, and job creation in a country grappling with a 33% unemployment rate.
While Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi initially pledged to clear the visa and permit application backlog by June 2024, the department has now extended this deadline by an additional five months to the end of the following year.
As of November 24, 2023, there were 349 pending critical skills work visa applications, with the backlog in temporary residency visas exceeding 74,309, according to Motsoaledi
