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Global Migration

Facing new challenges in the immigration arena

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:17

An urgent matter that the new Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, will have to address is the release of a new quota list specifying the skills categories and number of positions that may be filled by foreigners, says Leon Isaacson, MD of specialist immigration company Global Migration SA.

Visa applications for foreigners who have needed skills are being delayed because the new list, which was due in February, has not been released.

“The quota lists are effective for a 12 month period,” Isaacson explains. “Our view is that the current list should prevail, but some Home Affairs officials are delaying applications because the old list has passed its expiry date and the new one is not yet available.

"This legislation needs to be signed and put into effect urgently, but there may be a further delay because the new minister has just stepped into office," Isaacson said.

Isaacson says the minister will have significant challenges to deal with in the immigration arena, as the turnaround team at Home Affairs has largely focused on civic and refugee affairs over the past 18 months.

“While some Home Affairs offices, such as the Cape Town branch, are working well in respect of immigration matters, others around the country are not functioning optimally, with poor decision-making and service creating problems for individuals applying for permits. This will have to be addressed.”

Discussing the immigration outlook over the coming months, Isaacson says it is anticipated that the new government’s economic planning ministries will introduce a different approach to immigration, possibly in 2010.

“There is talk of increasing protectionism for current businesses or industries that are suffering because of the global economic downturn, such as the textile industry,” he says. “We hope this will not lead to the closing down of opportunities for foreigners to work in South Africa or for companies to bring in skilled staff because they are always required, regardless of the economic circumstances.”

Isaacson suggests that the immigration system should be used as an instrument to promote economic growth by encouraging foreigners to invest and work in South Africa, rather than as something against which the country needs to be defended.

“For example, one of our clients, an EU investor, recently created 200 jobs by establishing an eco-lodge development in the Eastern Cape, where employment is rarely created in the private sector.”

A significant challenge facing the minister will be the implementation of recent legislative changes that allow Zimbabweans to enter South Africa on a 90-day visitor’s permit, which is issued free at the border, or on a six-month concessionary work permit, he says.

“The latter will enable Zimbabweans to do casual work in South Africa, but has not yet been put into effect. South Africa does not have a permit of this kind at present, and we are waiting for the relevant legislation and regulations.”

Isaacson explains that the rationale for issuing these permits is to regulate the South African market.

A cause for concern is that if the migration process is not managed correctly there could be a risk of more xenophobic outbreaks, as the issue of protecting work opportunities for local people is a fraught one, and the country’s resources will be under additional pressure.

He urges sympathy from the South African population for the plight of Zimbabweans, and believes that there should be high-level, large-scale government involvement to make sure immigrants will not be forced into squalid circumstances in South Africa where they will become vulnerable.

Isaacson says the main criterion for the international community, with South Africa as a key role player, is to make sure that the Zimbabwean economy is supported so that it can get back to normal as soon as possible, enabling those who wish to be repatriated to return home.

“But this might take a long time. While the politics in Zimbabwe appear to be coming slowly back together, there are still no employment opportunities, and food staples are expensive and in short supply in an economy that has deteriorated to virtually zero.”

He says that with numbers being bandied about of between 500 000 and two million people crossing the border into South Africa, the scale of repatriation would be regarded as a major humanitarian crisis for any country anywhere in the world. “However, our government’s policy has always been one of quiet diplomacy.”

A control mechanism to be put into place is that Home Affairs officials will carry out an assessment at the end of the six-month concessionary period, based not on the individual’s circumstances, but on the situation in Zimbabwe to decide whether the permit holder should return home, says Isaacson.

“This is likely to create unhappiness among Zimbabweans who are forced to go back although there might appear to be little appreciable change.”

As there has been no announcement of increased capacity or additional offices to handle the new permits, the backlog at permanent Home Affairs offices, which are already under huge pressure, will increase, he says.

Another change to the immigration landscape is that all South Africans travelling to the UK from July will require visitor permits or visas, which they must apply for in their home country.

“The authenticity of a large percentage of SA passports was being questioned because of abuses by a few people. Our government has therefore accelerated the implementation of tamper-proof South African passports containing a microchip, and applications are currently being processed in two to four weeks.”

Business people who do not have the time to queue at the British High Commission’s visa office may request a Saturday appointment. Frequent travellers may also apply for longer-term visas, which will initially be granted for two to three years.

In the current economy, South Africans will find it harder to get jobs in the UK, unless they are in selected industries, as the UK government wants to ensure that British and EU passport holders and nationals will be given preference. “Employers now have to comply with a set of legal obligations, effectively abolishing casual work.”

In terms of the global picture, Isaacson says many countries that want skilled immigrants don’t have opportunities for now.

“But that will probably change within a year or two because economies will pick up, new opportunities will arise, and skilled people will be in demand again.”

Phone Global Migration on 021 4190934 or visit Global Migration.