Life Partner Visa

Thanks for your help, I am really clueless as regards this kind of thing. Its good to hear from someone who has done it before. About the minimum of 5 years, I was under the impression from lots of websites that you could only get 'permanent residence' when you have been seeing someone for 5 yrs or more. But can get 'temporary residence' until a relationship reaches 5 yrs. Is this right? if it is, and with what you said in your last msg, im thrilled. Will save me a whole load of hassle and I can start planning:-D

Pleasure.
I am not sure about the minimum years one has to be in a relationship but you are probably right. I have another friend who has been in a relationship only for about 2 yrs and she was still able to live here. The only thing she needs to do is to renew once the date of her visa is up. Good luck and give me a shout when you do land in Cape Town!

Hi Steph

I saw your post and think you need to know the facts about your application. I agree with some things written by Beatrice01, and others are not correct.

1. You can apply for the Life Partner Permit (LPP) without having a job. Proof of your relationship usually consists of proof of co-habitation (same address on letters, etc) and proof of shared financial responsibility (a shared bank account or proof of transfers between you and your partner). Therefore, if you don't live together, this is a problem. Do you live together?
2. You must have an employment contract (preferably permanent with no time limit) before you can get a work endorsement (not a new permit, just an endorsement) on your LPP. You won't have to submit all the documents again, just a few new ones which can be filled in.
3. Your partner won't have to prove that he can support you, only to sign that he will support you. This is a very standard letter.
4. There is no time limit to have been together for the LPP. Of course if you are only together for one week, though, the Department of Home Affairs might not grant the VISA to you yet. You can only apply for permanent residency once you are together for 5 years. How long have you been together until now?
5. Your life partner permit is usually granted for 3 years, renewable once. When you apply for permanent residency, you will need to make sure you still have a valid LPP until you receive the Permanent Permit (which can take up to 2 years!)

I myself have a life partner in South Africa and she easily found a job. It all depends on your field of expertise.

Best regards
Jess Green

[links removed: no free advertizing please!]

Thanks Jess, for laying it out:
To many times we take the wrong advice and land up in a pickle.

Guys.
Just one more question on this issue.
I am a South African living with my girlfriend abroad. We want to come back to south Africa and should not have a problem obtaining a LPP. My question is this, however: Can she come on a normal 90-day tourist Visa and then we do the application for LPP whilst she is there in South Africa? Or do you have to apply through the embassy? Will she have to leave the country and re-enter once the permit is obtained?
Also-what is the general cost of this whole process?? For example, if you do it through a company-how much do they generally charge?

I'd appreciate your help with these questions.
Thanx guys.
Looking forward to coming home (+1 of course!)

Will

Hi Will

Your partner can enter SA and then apply, or apply from abroad. Two things are important here, and both revolve around the fact that our local Department of Home Affairs is VERY slow currently:

1. If she applies outside of South Africa, the permit will come much quicker than if she applies here.
2. If she applies here, she will have to get a Form 20 in her passport to allow her to stay beyond her 90-day VISA. This form states that she is allowed to wait upon the result of her application.

As to cost, there is no cost to Home Affairs, so technically it costs nothing. But to be sure, most people use an immigration consultancy such as ours. PM me if you would like to utilise our services, we are ImmigrationSouthAfrica.org.

Hope this helps!
Jess

Hi Guys
Does anyone know where to download the 'Life Time Partner Visa' forms online?
Or is this something you have to stand in the line at Home Affairs for?

thanks

Hi

The application form is available online on the Department of Home Affairs website. It is a generic form, where you will be required to tick the relevant boxes. Have you been able to collect all the required documents for the application?

Hi Steph.
when you come here, you will keep on renewing your visa, then you will look for a job, once you have it, your employer will sign your working permit application, but we do not have some thing like a "life partner visa", you will have to get married to him then they will give you a temporary residence permitt and an identity document , after 5 years of being together, they will then give you a south african citizenship and passport.hope this will help...

I need to correct you, unfortunately.

S11(6) of the Immigration Act provides for a Life Partner Permit, which will allow a foreign nationa to to reside with their South African partner.

You DO NOT need to get married to be allowed to apply for a Life Partner Permit, as each South African national has a constitutional right to have their (foreign) partner reside with them in South Africa.

If you have a job offer by the time you wish to submit the application, one can add a work endorsement to the permit, allowing you to work.

Instead of the work endorsement you may add a business endorsement to the Life Partner Permit, allowing you run your own business.

If you get married, you will need to apply for a Spousal Permit (instead of the Life Partner Permit). The only difference in the two permits is the marriage certificate.

Once you have been in a relationship for 5 years, or married for 5 years, you may apply for Permanent Residency. Please note that if you have been in a relationship for 4 years and then get married, the 5 years start from the beginning. Big flaw in Home Affairs' interpretation!

Haveing Permanent Residency will allow you to also apply for a South African ID.

Once you have had Permanent Residency for 5 years, you may apply for citizenship.

Please note that although a foreigner has a constitutional right, and even when you qualify for certain residency status', you will still need to apply at Home Affairs. Home Affairs will not simply "give" you anything.

Home Affairs will still verify that you are not an "undesirable person" in terms of the immigration act.

Hope this helps.

thank, so...they've been lying to me all along? i cant believe this, the steps i explained is exactly how we did it.... thanks so much, you never to old to learn.  can i contact you again when i need clarity on our matter?

I had a look at your profile, and it became clear that you have had first-hand experience dealing with Home Affairs.

It is very sad what conflciting and sometimes wrong feedback some Home Affairs officials provide.

You can gladly contact me anytime with questions.

sure, i owe you one, cheers

@Sandy @Nischal

Joachim is right in all aspects.

Hey guys, I'm planing to move to SA and apply for a LPP from within while on a visitors visa.

Been scouting around, thought i knew pretty much everything I need to know on this matter till I saw a "FORM 20" being mentioned here. What's it about, do I need to have it issued when I apply for my LPP or my visitors status keeps being valid until my application results come? Is it a paper I get when i apply for my LPP or a special document i need to apply for?

Thanks in advance and here is the info I got so far regarding the matter, bit long but hope it helps:


*Original and copy of my South African life partner’s ID
*My original passport (with copies)
*Official application form BI-1738
*Police Clearance (translated by an authorized translator)
*Radiological Report (SA)
*Medical Certificate (SA)
*Letter of Support by my life partner (notarized), Stating that he will support my application for temporary residence, supports me emotionally, financially and in any other means necessary, confirming that we are in a serious long term relationship excluding all others, which we intend as permanent and that we are cohabitating
*Affidavit (BI-1712A) where spousal relationship other than a marriage is applicable (such as a life partnership) with proof of cohabitation (Affidavit: Make sure you obtain this form directly from Home Affairs. The form we used was downloaded from the internet and apparently not the most recent form. As of Oct. 21, 2010 it is titled BI-1712A, “Affidavit in Respect of Parties to a Permanent Spousal Relationship”)
*Rental Contract which has both of our names on it (proof of cohabitation
*Letter from mother/father stating we stayed together in SA/my country during visits (proof of cohabitation)
*Notarial Contract, in the case of cohabitation (Otherwise called a Cohabitation Agreement, stating date when relationship commenced, any rental agreement entered into together, current address of cohabitation, agreements about respective proprietary rights and liabilities arising from the domestic partnership arrangement) (I used the services of Rita Annemarie Jordaan in Waterkloof Ridge Pretoria, at the cost of R500 for the contract)
*Bank statements for last 3 months prior departing to SA (Proof of Financial Means)
*Joint bank account statements (proof of "shared financial responsibility”) If you both open a bank account together, with statements going to both your names to one address
*Notarized affidavit from a friend/family member attesting to how I met my partner and how long we have been in an exclusive relationship. I didn't end up needing the affidavit - Home Affairs didn't require or request it - but it is useful to have backup in case they question your relationship

A few personal notes – make sure you photocopy every single document and take them to the police station to certify the copies (this is free!) before handing them in to Home Affairs. Some documents they require an original while others they will accept a certified copy

Hi Sinsin

Do not worry about the Form 20. This document was issued when an application was submitted, the current visa had expired, but the new permit not issued yet.

Home Affairs does not issue these certificates anymore, HOWEVER, you are allowed to legally remain in the country once an application has been submitted.

Thanks a lot Joachim, glad it's finally sorted.

Is the list above full, or I'm missing something?

Hi all

Firstly, thanks a TON for all these extremely useful comments, it has been a terrific help! It's amazing how everyone is available and willing to pitch in and help each other. 

I have one query.  My boyfriend needs to fly out of the country to renew his visa and get his police clearance certificate from his country (Spain).  What I'd like to find out is the following.

Since it seems that the application for a life partner visa will be faster if he applies through the South African embassy in Spain, does this mean that I would need to fly to Spain to be present to apply for this visa there?  In South Africa, both parties must be present when applying, so I assume the same rule applies?

Any idea of how much faster it is if it's done from the embassy rather than in SA via home affairs?

Thanks once again, this forum has been exceptionally useful and hope I can return the favour to someone once we have gone through the process. Holding thumbs that all this will work!

Jules

Home Affairs in South Africa currently takes 4-6 months to process an application. South African embassies take 10-15 working days.

There is also a new immigration law being discussed, and we anticipate that it will be passed within the next few weeks. If this happens, all applications will need to be submitted at SA embassies, and may no longer be submitted at Home Affairs. You can refer my earlier post on this forum https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=66367

Regarding your situation, if you plan on doing the application on your own, then I would suggest that you give the embassy a call. Each embassy is different and the way they do things also differ.

Hope this helps.

Hi Joachims

Thanks a mill - as usual your advice is most helpful. We'll contact the embassy.

Cheers
Julia

Hi


I have been living in SA for 6 years. I had 2 working permit and just got my partnership visa last week (waited for 7 and half months..). I have several questions regarding 2 topics.
First I would like to know what documents are necessary to obtain the endorsement of my current visa in order to work. How long do you think this process can take and are we allowed to work during the process or not. I read that it could be possible to start working if Home Affairs was not able not process the application within the 30 days.
Secondly, I would like to know which road I should take to obtain permanent residency.I have been with my partner for 6 years and work for 6 years.

Thanks a mill for your help!!

G

Welcome on the forum coubrasn

I would suggest you to create a new thread as well together with your queries. It will more visible and will thus increase your chance in obtaining reaction/responses more quickly.

coubrasn wrote:

Hi


I have been living in SA for 6 years. I had 2 working permit and just got my partnership visa last week (waited for 7 and half months..). I have several questions regarding 2 topics.
First I would like to know what documents are necessary to obtain the endorsement of my current visa in order to work. How long do you think this process can take and are we allowed to work during the process or not. I read that it could be possible to start working if Home Affairs was not able not process the application within the 30 days.
Secondly, I would like to know which road I should take to obtain permanent residency.I have been with my partner for 6 years and work for 6 years.

Thanks a mill for your help!!

G

Hi

Did you apply for the Life Partner Permit on your own or did you use an agent? If you used an agent, they should have informed you that one can add a work endorsement to the Life Partner Permit, however, proof of a valid job offer had to be submitted along with the Life Partner application.

If a foreign national holds a Life Partner Permit, but only later receives a job offer, an entirely new application (for a Life Partner Permit and this time with the endorsement) will need to be prepared and submitted.

Some candidates have simply gone to Home Affairs and shown an employment contract, after which the official just amended the permit.

This is, however, not proper procedure and it may lead to some bad consequences down the line. For example, if you wish to extend that visa, Home Affairs will find out that the correct process was not followed and they will hold the candidate accounatble. Result may be deportation.

Thus, to answer your question, a new application will need to be submitted, ad it will need to inlcude proof of a job offer.

Regarding the 30 days: yes, there was a court case against Home Affairs where the court held that if Home Affairs does not issue a permit after 30 days (without good cause for the delay), the foreign life partner may start work.

So this forms a legal precedent.

Please note, however, that should you start working wihtout a valid permit (even if you have applied for a Life Partner Permit with work endorsement), Home Affairs officials can still detain you. It will then be your responsibility to take the matter to court. Due to the precedent you should be fine, however, you would need to go through the entire process as Home Affairs officials may be failiar with the Immigration legislation, they may not be aware of any legal court cases.

Hope this helps.

PLEASE NOTE, that the 30 day court ruling ONLY pertains to Life Partner application!

Any other permit application, e.g. work permit, study permit etc, will first need to be completed before the applicant can conduct his/her activities legally.

JoachimS wrote:

Hi Sinsin

Do not worry about the Form 20. This document was issued when an application was submitted, the current visa had expired, but the new permit not issued yet.

Home Affairs does not issue these certificates anymore, HOWEVER, you are allowed to legally remain in the country once an application has been submitted.

Hi Joachim,

I applied for my LPP and work permit endorcement on the 17th Feb and am still waiting for it to come through. My Tourist Visa expires next week on the 29th April, from what you have said earlier, I don't need to do anything to enable me to stay past the 29th. Is that correct?

Many thanks for all of your extremely useful advise!

Hi Kate

Home Affairs currently takes 4-6 months to process an application.

Once an application has been submitted, the applicant is allowed to remain in the country until Home Affairs has finished processing the application.

Should you wish to travel I would suggest you take the receipt to Home Affairs and have it stamped with the current date. When you leave SA this will show that the application is still in process at Home Affairs.

Thanks so much for the quick response! Not so happy about the 4-6 months though :-( Not sure how I am going to survive without working until then!

Cheers,
Kate.

HI!!!  I'm a South African citizen and my boyfriend (from USA) is applying for the LPP.  I am sure we have all the required documents we need.  I am curious, however, to find out what he would have to do in order to get a driver's license in South Africa?  I read on http://roadsafety.co.za/2009/08/11/abc- … nse-in-sa/ that people can apply to convert their license but will either need: identity document (ID), temporary ID, valid South African passport, or foreign passport with permanent residence permit.
He would only be applying for Temporary Residence.  Does anyone know if a temporary residence permit will allow him to convert his license?

Thanks in advance

Hi Joashims

I was reading all your replies to everyone...really, really helpful. My fiance is also applying for the life partner visa and I just wanted to ask you a few quastions.

We only heard about this visa a while ago and are using an agent to help us get this visa. We have all the papers and have filled them in and will deliver them to the agent later this week.

The only thing is that my Egyptian fiance has to go back to Egypt on the 10th July 2011 and so we only have about 2 months to get his visa. Would he be able to stay in SA legally while he waits for Home Affairs to give him his visa? I mean also if he has a reciet to show he has applied for this new visa whilst his tourist visa is still valid.

How long would it take for him to recieve his visa upon application? We were told it takes around 2 months, is that right? I saw that you said in a comment that it takes 4-6 months, that's why I was asking.(because that's a very long time to stay legally in SA without a "legal" visa).

Thanks so much for your help and advise...I really appreciate it

Jacky

Hi Jacky

Once an application has been submitted to Home Affairs the applicant is allowed to legally remain in the country until the application has been processed.

Processing times at Home Affairs can be anything at the moment. Some applications have been pending for 8-10 months now. Some even longer. Other have been processed in 1 month, some in 2 or 3.

At this stage there does not seem to be a system in place within Home Affairs, but the trend is that more recent applications seem to be processed quicker. Thos submitted months ago are stuck.

Unfortunately I cannot provide you with any concrete timeframe, but I hope that this helps a bit.

Ok, thank you so much for your help Let's hope it takes a shorter time.

Btw, i spelt your name wrong in my previous message to you...sorry about that

Have a good day

Hi Jacky

I didn't even notice

Hey to everyone,

I lived in Cape town for almost 2 years and took the decision to go back to France, which I realized now, was a bad idea!
I have been in a relationship for more than a year now and I want to go back to my boyfriend in Capetown. I want to apply for life partner visa but I need some informations...

I read everything above but I need to be reassured knowing that I have already booked my flight (which is on the 1st of june)

1st question: Can I apply for a life partner visa from South Africa once i am there or do I have to do it from France; I believed that it was possible but when I read the post called "NEW IMMIGRATION BILL" (posted by JoachimS), it made me doubt

2nd question: Can I get a job even if I am still waiting for my life partner visa to be valid

Hi

At the moment you can still submit an application within South Arica, however this will change when the new law comes into effect (anticipate mid June). After this, no applicant on a tourist visa can submit an application within South Africa.

In response to your second question:

The Life Partner permit alone will not allow you work. If you wish to work, you will need a Life Partner Permit, with a work endorsement.

The work endorsement can be added if you have a job offer when the Life Parter permit application is submitted.

Should you NOT have a job offer when the Life Partner application is submitted, then you will only receive a normal Life Partner Permit (which will NOT allow you to work). Once you DO receive a job offer, an entirely new application will need to be prepared and submitted. But this can then be done from within South Africa.

Hope this answers your question.

Joachim

Thank you very much for your help!

I have another question: Where can I get the forms, I can't find it on the Home affairs website. I wish i could check a list of documents I have to provide (like police clearance...)

Thank you again

Hi,

My partner who is a British national has just been granted a life partner visa with a work endorsement after 5months of waiting.My question is ,if he decides to change jobs ,does he need to through the whole process again or is it a quicker process ?

Hi

Unfortunately a completely new application will beed to be submitted.

JoachimS wrote:

Hi

Unfortunately a completely new application will beed to be submitted.

Hi Joachim,

I was under the impression it was a much simpler process to change employers. Can you please advise if I will be able to start work with a new employer while I am waiting for the new permit or will I have to wait potentially another 6 months?

Many thanks,
Kate.

Hi

Unfortunately the process would be the same. This is a great flaw in the immigration legislation, but one that has not been addressed on the new Amendment Act.

The only advantage will be that if you already hold the Life Partner Permit, you will not need to leave South Africa to apply. The application can be made from within South Africa.