If I want to emmigrate to South Africa from UK how difficult is it - has anyone done it and what do I do with bank accounts, student loan etc???
2007-03-22 23:32:22 · 20 answers · asked by allan.cooke 2 in Travel ➔ Africa & Middle East ➔ South Africa
I want to go because my girlfriend lives there so canada & oz are not an option - I know the country is different to here but I'm looking for specific advice on how i actually do it!
2007-03-22 23:45:57 · update #1
The simple answer to that question is yes!
2007-03-23 03:35:35 · update #2
Are you crazy? Its one way traffic (this way) at the moment. I have SA friends and the stories they have told me are terrifying! The lunatics are running the asylum now I am afraid, Good luck if you go though (you will need it)!!!
2007-03-22 23:35:25 · answer #1 · answered by Floppy Dick 2 · 7⤊ 6⤋
I am South African and have immigrated back and forth a couple of times. The banks are brilliant over there but you pay quite a bit for their services! You just have to walk in and open an account. Everything there is done using an 'identity document' rather than a passport so that might be a problem. Student loans? What are they?
I believe that as a non-South African you need to have a huge stack of money to emigrate there because of the poverty, so that will be your biggest porblem - I'm talking millions!
2007-03-23 06:38:14 · answer #2 · answered by zweebob 2 · 5⤊ 0⤋
For once Alf has a good answer - ask at South Africa House in Trafalgar Square. They should have the latest specific info you need with regard to visas, work permits and so on.
Paying off a GBP student loan when earning rands will be tough, as I am sure you have calculated - the exchange rate is not on your side.
Keep your bank account in the UK, it's useful to have that open.
To open bank accounts here, you will need your passport for proof of ID and some sort of utility bill or lease agreement for proof of your local address.
Best of luck to you and your lady, I hope you will be very happy here!
2007-03-24 05:02:38 · answer #3 · answered by @homeincapetown 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Kuschke: Dream on and stop smoking that stuff.
Yes we do have a bit of everything that goes on there and everywhere but not in abundance as you do.
2000 children killed last year in SA.70 in UK (We have a larger population. 31000 murders by firearms. Well we don't have that many murders in the whole of the EU,now 25 countries,in UK there are 700. Your 31000 is greater than the violent deaths in Iraq.
If Mbeki is doing so good with the crime,why are there so many people complaining.
Next time I get a petition from someone whose daughter or son was murdered,I'll send it back and tell them that it could not be that bad.
I have a daughter and Grandson there and you cannot tell me what it is like. Take your blinkers off.
2007-03-24 14:08:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
It's not hard. Maybe it's good that someone from overseas came over and instead of falling for the idealistic crud they get fed by tourism boards, get to see what it's really like, then see if they can survive to tell the tale to their friends.
I left because of the crime and the government's inability to do anything aobut it. You have no guns, those are in criminal hands. If you get attacked or robbed or hijacked, you're lucky if they take anything before killing or just disfiguring or maiming you. Police are useless (many thousands of them get killed per year), don't even arrivve at the scene mostly, lose dockets all over the place, under 10% of the crimes even get reported due to the lack of faith in the so-called justice system, and of those, 2% maybe make it to court.
If you are robbed, the robber if injured goes to a private hospital, best of everything, if you're not on a overpaid medical aid, you get to go to hospitals where bloodied rags lie out in the open everywhere, AIDS is rampant...
By all means, find out for yourself just why over 40 families per week leave one-way.
2007-03-26 08:13:00 · answer #5 · answered by Unicornrider 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
South-Africa is the most beautiful country in the world. Just remember that you have to have your eyes and ears open all the time and have to be vigilant at all times. My kids live in S-Africa in the South-coast and they have no problems there whatsoever. Should you be moving to Pretoria, Durban or even Capetown aaiiisscchhhh just take care. If you can get over your fear and just live life from day to day you will enjoy it just remember SA is quite expensive now, house-prices have gone up but stilll i love that country to pieces.
2007-03-23 09:11:57 · answer #6 · answered by Duisend-poot 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have read all the answers you received so far and it is pretty much negative! I am a South African from the pre- and after-apartheid times. Yes, we have problems. Yes, we have crime and rape and murder. Are we so unique though? Just because it goes out to the world daily does not mean we are automatically the worst in the world. I watch SKY NEWS every day of my life - have been for the past 15 years and in SA we do not see what crime you have there is we do not have access to the satellite services. So - the majority people in SA do NOT know about the crime in UK. There are murders, rape, theft, government corruption, corporate fraud and corruption. I watch EURO NEWS as well, I watch CNN as well. SA is NOT unqiue when it comes to crime and murder. Of course we live with high security fences and alarms everywhere. To say though that we will become like Zimbabwe I take the utmost objection to. TO say that ALL blacks/asians in SA HATE whites - not true. I have a friend in UK who recently had a problem at his child's school and one problem there that came about amounts to RACISM. It is rife in UK, it is rife in USA. Should you take the corruption and murder and theft in the USA percentage wise to SA, we are NO WORSE off than USA, for example. Ultimately it is your choice to move. To move though just because you a girlfriend in another country should not be only reason. Should you decide to move though , no ours banks are not a problem. In fact I am have been told by two friends that have now been in UK for a number of years that banking in SA is actually more advanced!!
2007-03-24 07:07:33 · answer #7 · answered by Kuschke 2 · 2⤊ 3⤋
You really need to do a lot of research and weigh up the pros and cons before you do this.
By moving to South Africa you will be losing a lot of freedom which you may be taking for granted right now.
I lived in Cape Town for 32 years.
I have had 2 cars stolen, appartment burgalled, friend murdered (for R200), 2 (girl) friends raped, mugged once, numerous posessions stolen ranging from cellphones to mountain bikes etc. and that is just what happened to me.
Another thing to consider, is it´s more restricting for women, as they are soft targets.
My wife, who is Italian, felt particularly claustrophobic our last year there.
Do yourself a favour - google or youtube "crime" "south africa"
There have been many a question like this about South Africa on Yahoo, you can check them as well.
The link below is from a camera on one street corner in Durban, South Africa.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbwbsf64w...
One of these links is a poll, by telephone, where 98% of the people who phoned in voted that crime is totally out of control in South Africa!!
Look at these links and decide for yourself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zkqilyfb...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhnflbrc7...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwxsidp3r...
Educate YOURSELF, make YOUR OWN decisions and then decide for YOURSELF.
Whatever you decide I wish you the best of luck, South Africans are a very friendly and diverse people, who will do their best to make you comfortable (except, of course, the ones who have criminals intentions).
2007-03-23 07:30:49 · answer #8 · answered by turniton5 3 · 5⤊ 0⤋
Listen dont waste your time going to South Africa, the apartheid is now in a reverse roll,and you will find it very difficult finding a job.In conculsion there are hardly any Police protection,and you will find it very violent.That is because of corruption in the Police force and the goverment.
2007-03-23 17:09:09 · answer #9 · answered by Wonderstar 6 · 6⤊ 0⤋
Go with every intention of getting to know a different life. Just like here you have to ask to receive and south Africans can be helpful but they can be just as full of sh*t.
Find out for yourself what its like and remember to always be alert and stick together with your friends that you make.
South Africa is a beautiful place but extremely hard to live in... If you can live in South Africa you can live anywhere...
2007-03-23 09:57:23 · answer #10 · answered by wobble's 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋
They have an Embassy in London so go there and enquire but last I heard they require a large deposit of money from foreigners.
2007-03-23 12:38:55 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋