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Home affairs minister Leon Schreiber says the government remains committed to building a digital-first department that attracts investment, creates jobs and enhances South Africa’s global competitiveness following the launch of phase two of the Trusted Employer Scheme (TES).In a statement on Monday, the department of home affairs said it had gazetted the second phase of the “highly successful” TES, describing it as another major step in modernising South Africa’s immigration system by cutting red tape, attracting investment and supporting economic growth and job creation.In the Government Gazette dated July 11, Schreiber said the purpose of the TES is to “allow South Africa to more easily attract skills and manage immigration, particularly in the processing of applications for senior executives, technical personnel, corporate employees and investors”. “TES is not for the employment of unskilled and low-wage labour. The overarching objective of TES phase II is to support the government’s efforts in positioning South Africa as Africa’s premier investment destination,” he said. Under this scheme, a company looking to employ skilled foreign workers would be vetted and approved in advance to reduce the administrative burden for visa applications. “Building on the success of the first phase, the expanded scheme will now include companies involved in strategic infrastructure projects, businesses establishing regional and global headquarters in South Africa, and qualifying entities in the financial sector. “It also forms part of the department’s broader digital transformation agenda and features a dedicated online application process that will ultimately be integrated into the world-class Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) platform.” The minister said TES used a risk-based approach to simplify visa applications for accredited employers, thereby enabling “qualifying businesses to recruit critical skills faster, while upholding the integrity of the immigration system”.“To qualify, companies must demonstrate meaningful investment in South Africa, employ predominantly South African citizens or permanent residents, invest in skills development, and operate in priority sectors. Applications to TES phase two will be independently assessed by an interdepartmental committee to ensure a transparent, merit-based process,” the minister said.“The launch of a bigger and better TES is yet another marker that home affairs increasingly works as an economic enabler, rather than as a constraint. This directly contributes to the apex priority of the government of national unity, which is to grow the economy to create jobs.“The introduction of a secure and efficient online portal, as well as our ongoing work to transition TES into the world-class ETA platform, also forms part of our broader digital transformation agenda. “Through our vision to deliver home affairs@home, we are irrevocably committed to building a digital-first department that enables investment, creates jobs and makes South Africa’s economy more globally competitive.” Cosatu spokesperson Zanele Sabela said the labour federation noted the second phase of the TES and its aim to stimulate investment in critical sectors such as strategic infrastructure.“Companies that establish their headquarters in South Africa will boost economic growth and in turn create jobs. For us it is imperative that South African workers remain at the centre of employment and skills development; therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the scheme is not abused and utilised to bypass employing and training South African workers,” Sabela said.“TES must be linked to actual critical and scarce skills as per the gazetted list and not abused by employers to undermine our labour laws. Government and organised labour must remain vigilant to ensure TES is not used to import vulnerable workers that can be exploited, thereby undermining the country’s labour laws. “Skills transfer must be insisted upon to reduce dependence on foreign recruitment over time. Employers who are found abusing TES must be removed from the scheme and heavily penalised.”
