The Status was established in partnership with the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency, the Gauteng Investment Centre (GIC) and VFS Global and aims to mitigate the burdens and difficulties faced by senior executive members of recognized companies from renewing and applying for their visas.
Executives who are holders of temporary residence visas as well as other foreign employees within these corporates may make use of this new system. The system seeks to provide for shorter and more efficient visa applications process for foreign nationals employed by corporate companies.
Recognised corporate entities must first apply for Corporate Account status with the department. This done by way of written submissions to the Director of Corporate Account. The Department reserves the right to grant or not to grant a Corporate Account status to any company and to ensure that selection of corporates is fair , ethical transparent a score card system has been implemented for this process.
The points system, as contained in the Government Notice No. 38787 operates a follows:
1. The number of visas required in key positions - Twenty points;
2. Magnitudes of the incremental Capex spend over the coming three years - Twenty points;
3. National priority/relevance of the visa requested to the development of national infrastructure - Twenty points;
4. Critical skills component - percentage of visas contained in the notice contemplated in section 19(4) of the Immigration Act, 2002 (Act No. 13 of 2002) - Twenty points;
5. Transfer of skills - related efforts by the relevant corporate applicant to transfer imported skills to locals - Twenty points;
6. Proof that at least 60% of the total staff complement employed, in the operations of the business are South Africans or permanent residents employed permanently in various positions- Twenty points.
By Geruza Bumba