No more PR through your SA child

Permanent residence through minors is now not possible.

There have been a great deal of questions regarding obtaining PR through your child. In fact, it has often been stated on this website and others that it is possible and it was also done many times before for various clients, both prior to the new immigration regulations and after they were signed in. The days of successfully applying, however, seem now to be numbered.

The new SA immigration regulations now stipulate clearly that the child must be able to support the applicant. Here is the wording:

23 Permanent Residence
…
(7) In the case of an application contemplated in section 25(2) of the Act in respect of a permanent residence permit contemplated in sections 26(c) and (d) and 27(g) of the Act, the citizen or permanent resident shall satisfy the Director-General that he or she is able and willing to support and maintain the foreign relative making the application.

The South African Department of Home Affairs did not seem to mind this, but more recently it has been seen that they reject these applications with the consequence that Immigration South Africa™ does not advise this PR application type any longer. The reason for rejection is exactly in line with this regulation and states that no proof was submitted showing that the SA citizen or PR relative has sufficient funds to support the applicant.

Those wishing to apply for a visa through their SA child can as a second option consider a Temporary Relative’s Visa to get into SA and then changing it here to, for example, a work visa (e.g. once a work contract has been signed).

It is a bit of a shame to see this happening, as some would say that parents deserve to be able to stay with their children, however this visa type was greatly misused in the past and often seen as a way to “get into” South Africa easily. For those who wish to stay with their kids, the above-mentioned second option still exists.