Visas | Before you leave | At Heathrow | First things First | Accommodation | Travelling | Working in London | Directory | All links
Before you Leave
•Make sure you get your passport well in advance. To be safe, apply at least three months in advance, and if you feel they are dragging their feet, push them slightly with a call or two;
•Inform yourself about the legal (visa & permit) requirements
•Check your passport validity (see here for SA passport applications). The best is having enough time left on it to see out the length of your visa
Next ...
•Go to a travel agent or the British Consulate and get a list of the things you need before you can apply (discussed here and below). Make sure to follow exact instructions – you don't have that many chances to get it right.
•Get X-rays and certified documents done as quickly as possible, but documents like bank statements are best kept for last, because te more recent they are the better.
Applying for a Visa
Ever wondered why the hallways of state institutions are so wide? It is to prevent those pitching up late for work from bumping into those who are sneaking away from work early. There is also a rumour that their bonuses rely on the length of queues. In this regard that the new arrangement for application might actually a good idea.
In the past you had to apply directly at the consulate. Now the British High Commission in Pretoria has appointed DHL to take in visa applications on its behalf. From the 18th of April 2006 applications from South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique and Swaziland should be lodged at the DHL Visa Centre in Midrand or at one of 7 appointed DHL Express Centres throughout the region.
For general information about this service visit here.
More information and directions of DHL offices where applications could be made:
Advantages of this procedure
•Visa applications may now be lodged in 8 locations.
•Opening hours will increase from 20 to at least 66 hours per week.
•Applications may now be lodged on Saturday mornings for the first time.
•Applicants now have access to a comprehensive tracking system, a call centre offering application information, and an email information service.
•For all the necessary forms click HERE
•Regarding fees click HERE
•For general info regarding all visas click HERE
•For a checklist click HERE
•To track your application click here
•For general Q&A click here
General contact INFO
or call them at Tel: 011 729 2600
You might stll be called for an interview. In such case, keep things simple and focus on the theme “work and travel”. If you travel to Pretoria for this application process, you are advised to make provision for staying on a day or two, just in case you cannot finish your application in one day.
Documentation needed
•Application forms: If you are in the Pretoria area you can pick it up from the Consulate. Alternatively you can go to their website and download the forms, or download it from here.
•Your passport: Hopefully you applied for your passport well in advance and that it has your photo in it and not one of Tant Stienie, who has been deceased for the last 10 years. Make sure that you check the expiry date and that it will still allow you to finish your intended stay. If you have an old passport – take it with you! (See below left on this page regarding passport applications.)
•Passport photos: 2 x colour photographs rather than black and white. Read more about the photo specs here.
•Proof of funds: Typical red-tape stuff. Those who genuinely have the required amount are a rare species, but it is recommended that you have at least a whopping £2 000 (±R25 000) worth of funds. If you don’t have it, you will have to think creatively about how you can produce this amount at this stage.
•Bank statements: They require the last 3 months’ statements from a bank and not those from an ATM machine. You could ask a friend or family member to deposit money in your account in order to generate a favourable statement. Apparently you do not need to have this amount in your account for the whole period, but it will be safer to have “solid statements”, so think of this aspect well in advance.
•Copies of qualifications: Certified copies of recognised qualifications. You probably do not need to attach your Bitterfontein “skaapskeer“ certificate.
•The correct fee: Cash is king, and your cheque or plastic will not get you anywhere. The fee is £40 (±R500).
•Marriage certificate: If you have the cuff around the finger, then you must attach a full, unabridged version of your marriage certificate. You can get this from the Department of Home Affairs. Do not attach the original smaller one you got after marrying. If you have kids, it complicates the matter. Find out from an agent exactly what this entails, but generally you will have problems when the children are older than 5 years. (Also see the Visa section)
•Birth certificate: Not compulsory, but take it with if you have it.
•Itinerary: Although restrictions have been lifted, they still seem to require some kind of itinerary from you. “Ooh, I’m going to visit Big Ben, blah, blah, blah”. An agent can help you with these fabrications.
•Proof of accommodation: This is a good example of why it is probably better to arrange your visa through an agent. They normally have their own hostel there, or even just contacts that they can put you up with. For your application you will need proof of some sort that you have a place to stay after arriving in the UK. They could also ask you for an address at customs (when you enter). Normally a confirmed booking at a hotel (pre-paid even better) or a letter from a home-owner or landlord will be sufficient. (Also see
•Proof of return: Last but certainly not the least, you will need a letter from a company or individual that will confirm that you will have employment when you return. Not the most difficult document to obtain, but make sure it is on official letterheads, etc. and that the contact is solid.
If you are successful, you can receive your visa on the same day.
More information:
www.visa.fco.gov.uk (Foreign and Commonwealth Website)
www.britain.org.za (The British High Commission in South Africa)
www.dfa.gov.za/consular/uktips.htm (general government info)
www.impigroup.com (for any query in this regard)
Read more about General aspects before leaving on the next page
Applying through an agent
•There are a huge number of travel agents who can help you with your application. This is obviously a good idea if you are not in a position to travel to Pretoria. It will take a bit longer, because it will have to be sent backwards and forwards (about 2-3 weeks). It will also cost more, because the agent will also ask a fee for the management of the application. They could also assist you with valuable information and offer some travel packages.
•Make sure you find a reputable and trustworthy travel agent to help you with your application. Reputable names include OVC, STA Travel and YDP. Branches can be found in most big city centres and in big shopping centres. Some of the addresses are listed on the next page. Also look in newspapers and magazines – there are many adverts of agencies in the travel sections.
•Agent fees vary and it will depend on what they do for you. If they send your application away on your behalf, they will include the visa fee in their fee. They can, for example, help you with accommodation, insurance and other matters for which they can charge a fee. Best is to contact a few places and to compare the service and fees.
•Agents in the Pretoria area will probably direct you directly to the Consulate for the application process, but they will help you to fill in the forms, etc. Just note the new application procedure above.
•Shop around. Enquire at two or three places about what they can offer you. Just remember there are many sharks out there. Do not trust independent agents, unless you have excellent and trustworthy referrals.
•Don’t be lured by agents who prearrange work for you, unless it is really worth it. Some give pay rates directly converted into rands so that it seems like a lot of money, but once in London you realise that you have committed yourself and are actually working for peanuts. You might even have paid the agents for this service. Go to London with the attitude that you’ll discover for yourself what is best for your particular needs and find your own way. There are way too many travel clubs and agents trying to exploit the uncertainties and fears the prospective Working Holidaymaker may have. BUT there are good agents, and it can save a lot of hassle and money to already have a job when arriving in London - just make sure.
•Be prepared to be turned down by the Consulate. Consistency has never been the trademark of state institutions, and the British Consulate is no exception. Your friend could get his/her visa, while you might be turned down for no apparent good reason. It has been suggested in some cases that there are some racial undertones in many of their assessments (also at the ports of entry). This cannot be stated as a fact, but if you feel that you have been turned down on unfair grounds, try to lodge an appeal.
•The horror stories of people that get sent home from Heathrow are unfortunately a reality - but this is less unlikely to happen to you if you prepare yourself properly.
•¡If you are looking at flight prices, don’t be too fussy. One is not more likely than the other to crash. Take the cheapest, even if it entails some stop-overs – at least you will get to see some new places. Remember that you will not be able to buy a one-way ticket. The agent will give you good advice on the types of tickets you can buy and about return dates, validity of the ticket, etc. There is a good price war on the go, so look around for the best prices. The agent (who might be helping you with the application) will probably push you to buy a ticket from them, but keep your options open.
About the Visa red tape
Despite his brilliant brain, Solomon had a few things he could not figure out - how a snake sails up a wall, how a heavy ship can sail the oceans and how a women’s head works. What you should ask yourself in London is why they provide bus timetables (because buses NEVER run on schedule) and why they impose these very perplexing immigration rules. Many of them have been relaxed, but they still have to give you a very hard time with the application and entry, just for you to enter and basically do “whatever you want to do”. In all fairness, this is not only the case in the UK – but their “you-can–but-actually-you-can’t” procedure is surely another riddle for Solomon.
Addresses
British High Commission in Pretoria:
Consular Section
Liberty Life Place,
Block B, First Floor
Glyn between Pretorius & Schoeman Streets
Hatfield, 0083
Tel: (012) 483 1400/2
Fax: (012) 483 1444
Mon-Fri: 7h45-12h00 (If queue is long, remember they close at 11h00. They are closed during UK holidays).
Consular Assistance to SA citizens in the United Kingdom:
South African High Commission
South Africa House, Trafalgar Square
London
Three months before you Leave
If you are in some kind of profession, the following factors may give you those extra few pounds in your pocket the day you leave. Some of this is probably more applicable to the older generation.
In South Africa you are taxed annually on a gross earnings basis. The Revenue Services determine the monthly rate at which you will be taxed by assuming what your total gross earnings for the whole year will be. In other words, the taxman looks at your monthly gross earnings and mul-tiplies by 12, looks at the tax tables and determines the percentage rate at which you will be taxed. Of course, if you work for any period shorter than 12 months in that specific tax year, your total gross earnings will be less than that determined by the taxman, but you are still taxed at the pre-determined rate as if you have worked the whole tax year. If your total earnings for the tax year are less, you are supposed to fall into a lower tax percentage category. If your employer has deducted excessive tax monthly and paid it over to the taxman, you can claim it back after 28 February each year, but if you wait until then it might take a couple of months to get the rebate. To overcome this problem, inform your employer at least two months before you leave that your tax rate should be adjusted to reflect your real total gross earning for the year (up to the date you leave).
This normally results in an extra “refund” with your last pay cheque. Depending on your salary and the period worked in the year, this could be a significant amount, which could be handy for your trip abroad.
If your employer has deducted Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) con-tributions from your salary each month, make sure that you claim this. You could get up to three months payment after you leave your job (about two-thirds of your monthly earnings for each payment). You will have to finalise this before you leave for abroad.
3. Should your South African employer second you to the UK, you may request PAYE (the monthly tax against earnings) to be reduced in terms of the SARS Interpretation Note issued. The co-operation of the secondees employer is therefore important and needs to be in place prior to departure (note: the PAYE reduction is either arranged by the employer or the employee applying for a tax directive).
4. Ensure your Retirement Annuity Contributions are suspended whilst abroad, unless you wish to continue contributions for later tax deduction against future South African taxable income. The UK does not recognise South African funds for tax.
5. Decide if you wish to formally emigrate or informally leave – from an Exchange Control perspective. Do not confuse this financial emigration with a normal “foreign passport” application. Whilst on a South African passport and before you have built a sizeable (±R750 000 net) estate, emigrate out of the South African Exchange Control (Excon) system. At this stage there is no “exit cost” in taking all your South African assets legally offshore. You retain your South African passport and the funds in excess of R750 000 (if any) will be placed in a so-called Blocked Funds Account.
Having “emigrated” for Excon purposes, you are no longer “temporarily abroad” and all your future South African inheritances may be sent abroad. Many youngsters expecting to inherit from their parents resident in South Africa are not aware of the fact that they may (easily) and legally take the funds so inherited, offshore. We do not like to discuss death; however, proper financial planning extends beyond South African estate planning.
Failing to officially notify Excon of your departure may result in your inheritance being blocked or your having to pay a 10% Excon Exit Charge (in addition to all other taxes, i.e. estate duty and CGT) on the value of the SA assets exceeding R750 000 (R1.5 m per couple).
Contact Financial Forum International for any advice in this regard:
Hatfield, South Africa, Tel: 012 346 4747
Be sure to give notice at work and your accommodation well in advance!
Before you leave | At Heathrow | First things First | Accommodation | Travelling | Working in London | Directory | All links
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