Most South African university students want to leave the country because of crime, corruption, lack of job opportunities, failing infrastructure, and the rising cost of living.
This was revealed in the annual 2022/23 Professional Provident Society (PPS) Student Confidence Index.
The survey involved 2,400 undergraduates and postgraduates studying towards a profession-specific degree at public and private universities.
The students studied valuable skills, including engineering, medicine, law, accounting, business management, and psychology.
The survey found that 90% of the university students desired to work and live abroad to gain experience.

What was particularly worrying is that the percentage of students, particularly younger black students, who want to leave jumped from 39% to 90% in two years.
It shows that the country faces a mass exodus of skills as young, qualified South Africans have an overwhelming desire to live and work abroad.
Apart from the better job prospects, they feel that working overseas enhances their chances of providing a better-quality future for their families.
There were also many problems, which the students cited as push factors for not wanting to live in the country.
78% of the participants rated crime and corruption as the topmost worrying factors about living in South Africa.
65% cited unemployment, 66% the failing infrastructure, and 52% the cost of living, poverty, and the economy.
Motshabi Nomvethe, PPS’s head of technical marketing, said there is a silver lining to students planning to leave the country.
She said many students indicated they would be willing to return to South Africa after gaining the necessary

experience.
“The students want to come back when the South African economy has improved and can absorb them,” she said.
Skilled South Africans flooding overseas
The concerning findings in the 2022/23 PPS Student Confidence Index come on the back of reports of skilled South Africans flooding out of the country.
Wits professor William Gumede warned that South Africa’s skills exodus had become a crisis with professionals of all races, ages, and parts of the country leaving.
He highlighted that South Africa needs people with skills, ideas, and energy to turn the country around and increase economic growth.
“When you strip a country of these key people, it seriously undermines it from an economic growth perspective,” he said.
Former Home Affairs DG Mavuso Msimang said the critical skills shortage in the country is one of the most significant blockages to economic growth.
He added that it was “really worrying” that the government was dragging its feet to address the issue.
The South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) said the critical shortage of skills is one of the key drivers behind the country’s collapsing infrastructure.
SAICE said the country had lost a shocking number of engineers in the civil sector over the last 20 years.
The South African medical fraternity also suffers from an exodus of nurses and doctors, resulting in understaffed public hospitals.
Profmed CEO Craig Comrie said the substantial exit of medical professionals over the last three to five years created tremendous skills shortages. V.5017

One of the highlighted topics: Critical Skills Visa.

- Key Insight: Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast track to working in South Afr...
- This matter relates to critical skills visa and its broader implications.
- Individuals are advised to seek professional guidance.

Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast trac V.6139
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One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, became a victim of identity theft in 2012 when fraudulent transactions occurred, using her personal details.

-The Pretoria High Court found that the department of home affairs had violated constitutional rights without due process.
-Only half of Lawyers for Human Rights` test group has been unblocked, while 385 000 identities remain blocked nationwide.
-LHR appeals extension, urges affected people to seek help now.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) are intensifying pressure on the department of home affairs over the national ID-blocking crisis, accusing the state of acting too slowly to unblock qualifying individuals despite a landmark court ruling.

In January last year, the Pretoria High Court found that the department`s practice of blocking IDs without due process was unlawful and unconstitutional. One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, a Swati citizen and South African permanent resident since 1998, fell victim to identity theft in 2012 when fraudsters used her personal details.

 V.6133
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6128
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6129
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A Washington state mother and her 6-year-old son have been released after spending more than three weeks in US immigration detention due to a brief trip to Canada and a small paperwork mistake, her attorney told CNN on Saturday.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand citizen who has lived legally in the US since she arrived in 2021, was detained at the Blaine, Washington, Customs and Border Protection checkpoint when returning home after dropping her two oldest children off at the Vancouver airport for a flight to visit their grandparents in New Zealand. Shaw, 33, chose the flight out of Vancouver because it was direct and she didn`t want her children to have to navigate a layover alone, her attorney Minda Thorward, told CNN.

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On 22 July 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Sitrusrand Boerdery`s review of the Department of Employment and Labour`s refusal to issue a Working Conditions and Salary Benchmarking Certificate, an essential precondition for obtaining corporate visas under the Immigration Act.

Acting Judge Kekana AJ held that the Department`s decision was lawful, rational and procedurally fair. This judgment illustrates how businesses can - and must - structure their corporate visa applications to meet statutory requirements, and how legal practitioners should prepare robust review challenges when administrative authorities decline to recommend foreign-work permits.

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The United States could forfeit an estimated 9.4 billion dollars in visitor spending over the next three years following the introduction of a new 250 dollars `visa integrity fee,` according to industry groups, who warn the policy risks undermining tourism and costing thousands of jobs.
The United States’ decision to introduce a 250 dollars `visa integrity fee` on international visitors has triggered sharp criticism from the global tourism industry, with officials warning that the measure could deter millions of travellers and cost the U.S. economy billions.
The 250dollar `visa integrity fee,` part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, will take effect later this year. According to immigration law firm Envoy Global, it applies to all nonimmigrant visa holders which include students, tourists, temporary workers, and business visitors particularly from African countries. V.6132
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6127
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1. Right to Legal Representation•You have the right to consult with a legal representative.•Contact an immigration practitioner, legal aid clinic, or attorney urgently.•Do not sign any documents without understanding them fully. 2. Section 34 of the Immigration Act•You must be brought to court with 48 hours to confirm arrest but you can remain locked up very long as courts figure out what to do with you •If you`re found to be illegally in South Africa, you may be detained for up to 30 days (extendable by a magistrate) pending deportation.•BUT this cannot happen arbitrarily. You must be informed of your rights, and Home Affairs must follow due process.- becomes a nightmare , you could lose your job , business , place to stay V.6121
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Driving for Bolt, Uber, Mr D, or Checkers Sixty60?If you`re undocumented, you`re risking more than just your income.The Risks if You`re Not Legal: - Vehicle impoundment - Heavy fines - Arrest & deportation - Permanent bans from working in SA V.6122
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