An applicant who wishes to apply for a business visa to establish a business in South Africa or a business that the applicant wishes to invest in, must show a prescribed financial contribution of at least R5 million from abroad into the business in South Africa in order to be able to qualify in this category.
Additional requirements for the business visa process would include the drawing up of a business plan in respect of the proposed business and also, most importantly, the employment of South African citizens. The business visa applicant would need to ensure that within 12 months of issuance of the visa at least 60% of the total staff complement employed are South African citizens or South African permanent residents. Furthermore, a recommendation needs to be obtained from the Department of Trade and Industry in respect of the feasibility of the business and the contribution of the business to the national interest of the Republic.
There are a number of business sectors that have been deemed to be in the national interest by the Department of Home Affairs in consultation with the Department of Trade and Industry and these business sectors may qualify for a reduction or waiver of the capital investment requirement:
• Agro-processing
• Business process outsourcing and IT enabled services.
• Capital/transport equipment, metals and electrical machinery apparatus
• Electro technical
• Textile, clothing and leather
• Consumer goods
• Boatbuilding
• Pulp, paper and furniture
• Automotive and components
• Green economy industries
• Advanced manufacturing
• Tourism Infrastructure
• Chemicals, plastic fabrication and pharmaceuticals
• Creative and design industry
• Oil and Gas
• Mineral beneficiation
• Infrastructure development
• Information Communication Technology
Under each of the above mentioned categories there are further subcategories that would specifically qualify a business to fall within the national interest. To determine whether you qualify into one of the proposed categories please do contact us confirming which category mentioned above your business would fall into. We could then conduct an appropriate assessment in respect of this business visa category.