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Family, work or study – 3 ways South Africans emigrate to the UK

admin October 9, 2022

4 minutes read

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Thousands of South Africans are moving to the UK every year, obtaining visas or passports through channels linked to ancestry, work opportunities or study.

Cross border financial and emigration specialists, John Dunn, Director of Citizenship and immigration at Sable International, looks at the options and what is required.

Ancestry visas

If you have a grandparent who was born in the UK, you likely qualify for the UK Ancestry visa. This is one of the best routes into the UK as it allows you to bring your partner and children as dependents. It can also lead to permanent residency (indefinite leave to remain) after five years, followed by citizenship.

The other requirements are that you are a Commonwealth citizen over the age of 17 and that you are willing to work while in the UK.

If you qualify for the Ancestry visa, there’s also a chance you might qualify for Citizen by Double Descent, so it’s worth taking Sable International’s free British Citizenship Assessment to ensure you explore all of your options.

UK partner or spouse visa

If you are married to or in a serious relationship with a British citizen or someone settled in the UK, then you can apply for a family of a settled person visa to join your partner in the UK.

This visa is valid for two years and nine months. After which time, you can apply for an extension to stay in the UK for a further two years and six months. After five years on the spousal visa, you’ll be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain and citizenship a year later.

The main requirement for this visa is the income threshold. Your UK partner will need to either earn a gross annual income of over £18,600 or have £62,500 in cash savings to support you in the UK – this number is higher if you have dependent children.

If you are unmarried, you will need to have lived together for at least two years and you will need to show proof of your relationship. The UK does not discriminate against same-sex partnerships when it comes to applications for partner visas.

Some visa types allow for the inclusion of family. You may be able to join a partner in the UK as a dependant if they hold a UK Ancestry visa, student visa, skilled worker visa or innovator visa. In these cases, you would not apply for a separate visa for yourself but, rather, you’d be included on their visa.

Child of a UK citizen or settled person

In the UK, a dependent child is generally one who is under the age of 18. You can join your parents as a dependant if they’re settled in the UK, or on their visa, until 18. Unfortunately, after that age, if you’re not already in the UK, your only option is if you happened to inherit citizenship by descent.

Work Visas

The most common way for South Africans to move to the UK is with a Skilled Worker visa. In order to apply, you must get a job offer from a company that has the right to employ overseas workers.

Once you have a job offer, you will need to meet a certain threshold of “points”, which are awarded based on factors such as your expected salary, skill level and experience. Some requirements are mandatory and others are “tradeable” (meaning that as long as you meet enough of the requirements to accrue 70 points in total, you should still qualify).

How points are allocated:

Job offer (Certificate of Sponsorship) by an approved sponsor – 20 points (mandatory)
Job is at appropriate skill level – 20 points (mandatory)
English at the required level – 10 points (mandatory)
Salary of £25,600 or above or at least the going rate for the profession (whichever is higher) – 20 points (tradeable)
Salary of £23,040 to £25,599 or at least 90% of the going rate for the profession (whichever is higher) – 10 points (tradable)
Salary of £20,480 to £23,039 or at least 80% of the going rate for the profession (whichever is higher) – 0 points (tradeable)
Job in a shortage occupation – 20 points (tradeable)
PhD in a subject relevant to the job – 10 points (tradable)
PhD in a STEM subject relevant to the job – 20 points (tradable)

You can use the UK’s Skilled Worker visa eligibility calculator to check if you’re likely to qualify before you start your job search. Alternatively, visit our UK immigration stand at the Global Citizenship and Emigration Expo and we’d be happy to chat through your options.

After spending five years in the UK on a Skilled Worker visa, you can apply for indefinite leave to remain, followed by citizenship.

Studying in the UK

Many South African parents are sending their children to study abroad to ensure they obtain internationally recognised qualifications and to give them the chance to live overseas.

Studying in the UK is one of the easiest ways to emigrate to the UK because the barrier to entry is lower. To qualify for a UK student visa, you need to be accepted into a UK university and be able to prove that you have enough funds to pay for your fees and for your stay in the UK.

A student visa does not lead directly to settlement in the UK. However, after you complete your studies, you can apply for a Graduate visa, which allows you to remain in the UK for two years (three with a PhD) while you find work. This gives you time to find a position at a company that’s willing to sponsor your Skilled Worker visa.

If you switch to a Skilled Worker visa from a Student visa or are under the age of 26, you will be considered a new entrant into the job market, which has a lower salary requirement and makes the Skilled Worker visa more attainable.