This has led to renewed interest in the country from South Africans who are looking at Mauritius as a permanent destination, says Marisa Jacobs, director at advisory service, Xpatweb.

“Skilled professionals and business owners with families in South Africa are taking note of finance minister Renganaden Padayachy’s changes and adjustments for foreigners.

“It is now easier to buy property, work, as well as retire on the island, which is appealing for many, including business owners, corporates and families in South Africa who are looking for a new place to call home,” she said.

Changes in requirements

In the past, South African retirees were only able to obtain a three-year permit for Mauritius. This has been extended to 10 years, with the requirement that the individual earns a recurring income of $1,500 (R25,263) per month, said Jacobs.

The amount can be paid annually, quarterly, or monthly, as long as it works out to $1,500 per month.

“The extension from three to 10 years gives retirees more certainty about their future in the country. Mauritius’ Permanent Residence and Work Permits have been combined into a single permit and extended from ten to twenty years.”

Jacobs said that the minimum investment to obtain an Occupational Permit (OP) has also been halved from $100,000 to $50,000 (R842,115).

The parents of an OP holder may now obtain a dependent permit to live in Mauritius. Professionals who are working as independent contractors can qualify for the self-employment permit, she said.

The requirement for this

permit is a deposit of $35,000 (R589,480) into their Mauritian bank account, and this permit is also valid for 10 years.

“Working professionals and self-employed individuals who want to move their spouse and ageing parents find these concessions favourable, especially if their dependents are no longer working.”

Property

Jacobs said that buying property is also a popular route of entry for those looking to move to Mauritius. In the past, foreign nationals were required to invest $500,000 in the property. This number has now been reduced to $375,000, she said.

“The dispensation for owning property in Mauritius is far more flexible than in most other African countries. In Mauritius, a South African is allowed to purchase a property as a freehold, or through a 99-year lease agreement with the option of renewal.”

Jacobs said that the island boasts excellent private schools, reputable banking systems, regulatory certainty, technology-driven government systems, as well as an efficient and linear tax system.

“The effective tax rate of 15% for individuals are well below those applicable to South Africa and other countries. A significant difference is that Mauritian residents are only taxed to the extent of the money that they bring into the country.

“These financial incentives, combined with the close proximity to South Africa, will likely see more people moving to Mauritius in the future. “

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EREMY MAGGS: I want to stay with crime now. Individuals with a criminal record may be faced with significant challenges when seeking employment, I think that’s a given. Here in South Africa, employers may legally exclude an applicant from consideration for a position if having a clean criminal record is what is termed an inherent requirement of the job. That phrase, inherent requirement, is important, but what exactly does that mean, and when can an applicant be lawfully excluded for having a criminal record? V.5321
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Home Affairs’ seemingly endless court battles set the department back more than R110-million between April 2023 and the end of February this year. This was revealed in a written parliamentary response by minister Aaron Motsoaledi. He said the department accumulated a litigation bill of R117 692 996.3, higher than the R72 637 944.51 spent the year before. V.5315
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In recent years, South Africa has seen a significant influx of immigrants from various African countries, as well as other parts of the world. This has raised important questions about the country`s immigration policies and their impact on job creation for both locals and immigrants. The South African immigration system, like many other countries, is a complex and ever-evolving process that aims to balance the country`s economic needs with its social and cultural interests. Let`s take a closer look at how this system intersects with job creation in South Africa. The South African government implemented the Immigration Act of 2002, which outlines the country`s immigration policies and procedures. Under this act, foreigners are required to obtain a visa or permit to enter, work, or study in South Africa. The type of visa or permit required depends on the intended purpose of the individual`s visit and their country of origin. V.5312
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Due to system downtime and load-shedding, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) lost nearly 141,000 hours of Smart ID application and production time between the 2019/20 and 2022/23 financial years. Minister Aaron Motsoaledi revealed this figure in a recent response to questions raised in Parliament by Democratic Alliance MP Adrian Roos. Motsoaledi provided a breakdown of smart ID production and application hours lost to technical difficulties and load-shedding per province for each financial year from 2019/2020. These disruptions hit home Affairs offices in the Eastern Cape the hardest, with over 34,000 hours to rotational power cuts and system downtime. Mpumalanga offices lost the next-highest number of hours at 17 V.5313
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Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has said the public has shown great support for the final White Paper on citizenship, immigration and refugee protection which appeared in the Government Gazette on Wednesday. Briefing the media, he addressed what he saw as a long-overdue need to replace an outdated Citizenship Act, as well as enact proposed changes to existing legislation. V.5306
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