Process of Moving to Mauritius

Hi Lauren,

Welcome to Expat.com!

You may have a look at the "Visas in Mauritius" guide as well.

Wish you good luck in your search.

Thank you!
Much appreciated.

Hi Lauren,

My name is Melanie I am also a South African from Johannesburg also looking to move to Mauritius permanently.  I have been going to Mauritius on holiday since 1991 and have been over there a couple of time and I lived in Mauritius for a few months during 2010 in an apartment in Balaclava and I can share many experiences and information with you in regard to living there.  In my opinion and from my experience it is absolutely the best place for me to live, I hate living in South Africa and have travelled to other countries but it is only Magical Mauritius that I always return to.

I work in a very large corporate law firm in Sandton and I have many friends in Mauritius and I am trying to wind down my life in South Africa and make the move to Mauritius.  I came onto Expat.com as I am looking for a house to buy possibly in the Balaclave area.  The Integrated Resort Schemes are very beautiful in Mauritius but extremely expensive.

While I stayed in Mauritius I made friends with a lot of the local people there whom I still stay in contact they are fantastic warm caring people unlike South Africans.  I went to stay in Mauritius alone with my baby who was one and half years old at the time and we were treated by everyone fantastically, grocery shopping was an absolute pleasure and just going about doing your day to day things was a pleasure.

Socialising and clubbing with the Mauritian people was an absolute pleasure.  Everything was nice and simple and uncomplicated unlike here in South Africa eg. obtaining an extended ticket or just going to a simple cell phone repair shop to fix your cell phone.  You can find everything you want in Mauritius even biltong and boerewors rolls.  Basic necessities such as water and electricity is so cheap to pay compared to South Africa and I believe from the locals that you pay an annual mimimum amount for rates and taxes on your property.

For R1 500,00 I purchased a huge trolley full of all kinds of groceries including meat imported from Australia and 7 bottles of local Alcohol which is very nice.  In South Africa you can only buy a few meagre things at Woolworths for R1 500,00.

Most small packets of spice in South Africa costs betweem R12 amd R15 a packet you can buy the same spice in Mauritius for R1,20.

All I&J and Country Fair products are on the fridges there and you pay about R10 more a packet than you would in SA only because it is imported from here.

A bottle of JC Le Roux Le Domain or similar costs about R100,00 a bottle also because it is imported from SA

I think it is an absolutely wonderful place to bring up children unlike South Africa from my experience here and there.

Let me know if you want anymore info.

Regards
Melanie Joyce

Dear Melanie Joyce

It’s so wonderful to hear such wholeheartedly nice words on Mauritius and Mauritians from a non-Mauritian.

This tends to reassure foreigners hesitating to make the venture to Mauritius, and also quash negative opinions, which, most of the time, are unfounded.

Still, the personal behaviour of the foreigner and his/her willingness to integrate the local way of life is also very important.

Anyway, I hope you realise soon your dreams.

Cheers

Vayid

Hi Vayid,

Yes I love Mauritius and it's people so much for 20 years now I should become an ambassador for Mauritius (ha ha).

I have a 3 year old little boy Storm he is half Mauritian his father is from Central Flacq but we are unfortunately not together anymore but it has not stopped me from making my dreams come true.

I hope to be in Mauritius permanently very soon with all my wonderful Mauritian friends and a wonderful life I left behind there I come from a very big country with a population of over 50million people and that is 50 million times the size of Mauritius but my country cannot compare to Mauritius that is so small and wonderful in so many ways.

Regards
Melanie Joyce

Hi Lauren,

I hope you got most of your answers from melanie who describe very well Mauritius, to obtain a resident permit is very difficult unless you buy an RES programe, othetwies you ca rent for a long term and then if you share the opinions of melanie then you can go forward, myself work has a project and th eprice is quietly correct.
Regards,

Dayana

[moderated: no free ads please]

Hi melaniejoyce, if you don't have Mauritian nationality you won't be able to buy a house, unless it's under the IRS / RES scheme. You can however rent, most expats do just that.
If your son has Mauritian nationality then maybe you could buy a house under his name.

Yes electricity and water is very cheap but most products are imported, therefore quite expensive if you compare it to Europe (don't know about South Africa).

lau_fox You can find answers to most of your questions in this forum as they have been debated again and again.

n.p

Hello,
Yes I am still interested and keen please contact me @ my email .e.
Anuraag.mehrotra@gmail.com,if possible please send in your contact details also.
Thank You
Regards
Anuraag

Hi Sleeping Cookie from Israel, thanks for your belated response.  I have been coming to Mauritius since 1991.  Yes my little boy is half Mauritian and entitled to his Mauritian Passport and citizenship, which passport is in the process of being obtained.  On legal advice from my Mauritian attorneys and chartered accountant a trust can be formed for my son who is a minor, of which he will be the beneficiary and a property (not on the integrated resort scheme which is highly overpriced) can be purchased in this manner.  Thanks I have done extensive research into these aspects and have been renting in Balaclava the last couple of times when I return to Mauritius.  I am currently back in South Africa since 23 February 2013 after having been in Mauritius dealing with all these aspects and visiting the Board of Investment etc.  By the way the majority of products on the shelves in Mauritius come from South Africa (except for the meat.  Only saw South African meat at Pick n Pay) on pricing the products while shopping, the goods from South Africa are sometimes about 40 or 50 rupees more expensive than here in South Africa that is food items (not the SA wine which is sometimes about 400 rupees more).  But it’s incredible to see each time when I arrive back in Mauritius just how much of South African business is there, particularly the restaurants and fast food outlets and Wow La Croisette and Pick ‘n Pay, Food Lovers Market, Engen just to name a few.  Fine food and fine shopping to add to the many other wonderful things in beautiful Mauritius.  Thanks for your input.  I am however seeking advice currently in regard to offshore investment while I am busy winding my South African life down here.

Hi Melaniejoyce (and others). Let me join Vayid in wishing you good luck.  It really feels nice to see foreigners having such nice words for Mauritius.  You seem to have done your homework - this is the best security against illusions and false hopes.  Well done.. and welcome (if I might say so!)