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Immigration Agents South Africa

What does an immigration consultant do?
Table of Contents
• What does an immigration consultant do?
o Does South African Immigration Consultants need to be registered to assist me?
o Am I guaranteed a visa through a South African Immigration Agent?
o What can a migration agent do for me?
o Is it necessary to make use of a South African Immigration Consultant to apply for visas or permits?
o I’ve Been Scammed Before and really don’t trust an Immigration Consultant?
South African Immigration Agents or South African immigration consultants are individuals who assist you in applying for any South African visa type or permit.
You may have used an immigration agency before or choose not to make use of one depending on the budget. The use of an immigration firm means you were assigned an immigration agent or immigration consultant to handle your visa application.
Before the Department of Home Affairs introduced the new immigration act in 2014, Immigration practitioners had to register and complete an exam in order to assist clients.
The new immigration act of 2014 saw section 46 repealed and amended. This means that DHA does not recognize Immigration practitioners any longer and that anyone can handle your application.
Does South African Immigration Consultants need to be registered to assist me?

No. The withdrawal of section 46 meant that DHA gave anyone the right to practice South African immigration.
An association was created out of the need to engage with DHA. This informal association called FIPSA (Forum of Immigration Practitioners of South Africa) now regulates South African immigration practitioners.
It’s not a requirement to register with them in order to practice SA immigration, however one may sign up out of free will and write an exam with them to be certified.
There are many immigration agents who are not registered, and this does not mean that their visa service is not up to a high standard.
You still need to do due diligence when making use of an immigration agent in South Africa or a South African immigration consultant.
Being registered with FIPSA means that all members need to adhere to their set of rules and regulations. Should they not live up to their standards, then you may lay a complaint with FIPSA.
Ultimately the decision lies with you as to whether you’d like to make use of a FIPSA registered immigration practitioner.
Am I guaranteed a visa through a South African Immigration Agent?

No. No one can guarantee you a South African visa if they do run as far as possible. Nothing in life is guaranteed other than death and taxes.
A visa application maybe 100% correct according to the requirements and DHA may reject your visa. This happens all the time and the only difference is that a South African immigration consultant will have the experience to handle the matter moving forward and get the desired result.
There are no tricks or special means to get your visa approved or fast-tracked.
What can a migration agent do for me?
The South African immigration agent can do the following for you:
• Offer immigration advice
• Be transparent about costs and visa processes
• Prepare your visa application
• Prepare you for the visa submission
• Notify you of the outcome of your visa
• Keep you updated with the latest news
What they are not allowed to do for you:
• Forge visa documents for the desired result
• Present inaccurate information
• Use your personal information for personal gain or against you
• Pay someone inside Home Affairs to get your visa
South African immigration consultants should always act in an ethical way with each person they offer advice to. Immigration consultants must always have your best interest at heart and must always be honest with their clients about the visa process.
Is it necessary to make use of a South African Immigration Consultant to apply for visas or permits?

No. You can apply for your South African visa on your own. There are many people who choose not to make use of migration agents when applying for a visa or permits.
The use of an immigration agent means spending more money which certain people do not have the budget for.
The drawbacks of not using one may lead to a negative visa outcome and time wasted. Many people end up submitting the wrong visa documents or applying for the wrong visa.
Through years of experience, a migration agent may have some ethical tricks up their sleeve for different visas and can keep you updated with the latest news.
If the budget allows you to make use of an immigration consultant, I recommend making use of one. This allows you to focus on the things you need to be focusing on whilst the immigration practitioner prepares your application for submission.
Which visas can a South Africa immigration agent assist you with?
1. Business visa �` Start a business in the Republic
2. Critical skills work visa
3. General work visa
4. Intra-company visa
5. Corporate work visa
6. Life partner visa
7. Permanent residence
8. Relatives visa
9. Retirement visa
10. Spousal visa
11. Study visa
12. Asylum �` New and Abandoned ( pre Covid 19 expired )
13. Refugee �` Expired & Certification
14. Asylum and Refugee Application �` Rejected by Standing Committee
I’ve Been Scammed Before and really don’t trust an Immigration Consultant?

That’s always a shame when people take your hard-earned money and scam you when thinking you are applying for a visa.
There are a few things you could do before making use of an immigration agency:
• Check that they are a registered company in South Africa?
• Do they have testimonials?
• Are they on social media?
• Do they have any complaints on hellopeter?
• Do they have a proper company email address and not a Gmail or Yahoo email account?
If you have recently been scammed my best advice would be to make a case with the South African Police department and present them with all evidence and explain what services they were supposed to render to you.
Always apply due diligence when making use of any immigration practitioner’s services and asking as many questions about the different visas you’d like to apply for.
Keep in mind that a South African immigration consultant should never charge you a services fee to see if you qualify for a South African visa.
It’s unethical to charge an individual just to find out if they qualify for a visa.
There only a handful of specialist immigration companies that deal with Asylum and Refugee matters and we are one of them .
Often the question comes up asylum is free why would I need someone to help me .
Indeed it is free and the system for newcomers are online and if you don’t understand how the process works you can send email upon email and nothing will happen. In addition since you are going alone for an interview and if you give the incorrect information you will and be sent home .Do you want that ?
15. Asylum �` New and Abandoned ( pre Covid 19 expired )
16. Refugee �` Expired & Certification
17. Asylum and Refugee Application �` Rejected by Standing Committee

An ethical immigration agency or consultant will only charge once you decide if they should handle your application for you. They should have terms and conditions which you can request to read.
Another key point is how long it takes for them to reply to you. Communication is key in this game and taking forever to return calls or emails should be a red flag for you.
Completing your own visa process can be a blessing or a nightmare. There are many things you need to consider and using a South African immigration agent can ease the pressure.
They can educate a prospective employer on your behalf or keep your prospective employer in the loop for example.
Remember that Immigration agents are human too and from time to time make mistakes. What makes it worthwhile is knowing that they will still assist you even when you receive a negative outcome. An immigration agent should look to achieve that positive result for you.
SA Migration will offer you a free assessment and let you know if you qualify or not. We will not take on your case if we feel that you do not qualify. Use our website to fill in our free assessment form. We’ll make contact with you to discuss your options.
Should you not qualify, we don’t mind taking that extra minute or two to tell you how you could possibly qualify in future.
We hate pressuring people to come on board as clients, instead if we feel that we would have a great working relationship and you feel comfortable then we’ll be happy to take you on as a client after your assessment.
18. Asylum �` New and Abandoned ( pre Covid 19 expired )
19. Refugee �` Expired & Certification
20. Asylum and Refugee Application �` Rejected by Standing Committee

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