Guide to Spousal Visa in South Africa – So Your Spouse Can Join You to South Africa

You might be wondering how to migrate to South Africa with your spouse; to accomplish this, you would require a spousal visa.

If you are a South African who has a foreign spouse, then you would require a spousal visa under the relative's section of the Immigration Act.

Firstly, you would need to know the difference between the spousal visa and the spousal permit. These two terms are used interchangeably and could be confused, but they are not the same thing. To put it into simpler terms, the visa is for a temporary residency, whereas the permit is for permanent residency.

The spousal visa can be applied for soon after you are married and is issued for two to three years at a time, whereas the spouse permit can be attained when you and your spouse have been married for more than five years. The spouse permit can be applied for only once. Once the spousal permit is issued, then it means that you have indefinite residency status in South Africa.

What should come first? The Marriage or the Visa?

You should know that for a spousal visa, proof of civil marriage union shown by a marriage certificate is required. Therefore marriage comes first before the visa. There is also an alternative option that you can go for, which is the life partner visa. You would need to prove to the authorities that you have been in a relationship for a minimum of two years. The proofs for this would include proof of shared financial responsibility and the proof of join cohabitation.

What are the requirements for a South African spousal visa?

The priority is for the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) would want to see that the marriage is legitimate. A valid marriage certificate is proving a civil marriage union. It is not required to be a South African Marriage certificate, and it can come from either part of the world as long as a governing authority officially approves it.

Can my spouse with a spousal visa conduct any activity while being in South Africa?

The answer is yes. The visa for spouses in South Africa is pretty flexible and allows for activities to be conducted while in the country. But the only thing is, you would have to have an endorsement in your visa.

How long does it take for a spousal visa to be processed?

After submission for the spousal visa within South Africa, it would take about 8 to 12 weeks to be processed. If it is submitted from outside South Africa, then it would take about 5-6 weeks as the number of applications in the embassies are much lesser and thereby processes faster.

Conclusion:

If you want to bring your spouse to south Africa, get help from genuine immigration consultants and get the ball rolling right away. Get an immigration assessment done, which is usually free of charge and then contact your consultant to get the process done right away.

Migrations Consultants is the most reliable and highly experienced Immigration Consultancy in Dubai & Abu Dhabi. Migrations Consultants has a long history of dedicated services and a network of satisfied clients to mark our success.