South Africa: Working

Overview

Before moving to South Africa to work, you should dispassionately examine your motives and credentials and ask yourself the following questions:

• What kind of work can I realistically expect to find in South Africa?

• Are my qualifications and experience recognised in South Africa?

• Are there any jobs in my profession or trade in the area where I wish to live?

• How good is my English? Unless your English is fluent, you won’t be competing on equal terms with many South Africans – you won’t anyway, but that’s a different matter! Most South African employers aren’t interested in employing anyone without, at the very least, an adequate working knowledge of English.

The answers to these questions can be disheartening, but it’s better to ask them before moving to South Africa than afterwards. While hoping for the best, you should plan for the worst and have a contingency plan and sufficient funds to last until you’re established. Many people turn to self-employment or start a business to make a living, although this path is strewn with pitfalls for the newcomer. Many foreigners don’t do sufficient homework before moving to South Africa.

© Survival Books Limited 2005

“Buying a Home in South Africa” 1st Edition, Graeme Chesters.

Reproduced with the permission of Survival Books Limited.

Further information on this topic can be found in “Buying a Home in South Africa” 1st edition, by Graeme Chesters.

For extensive information about buying a property in South Africa, you can purchase this book at www.survivalbooks.net