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I am a South African, my wife a "foreigner", we are back & living in SA for the past 6,5 years. We are for the last  8 months in the process with her "permanent residence" application.

I am not an expert on all the rules & regulations but believe me, we spent many hours trying to find out the best/correct ways obtaining a work permit for my wife.

In summary, we were told the following: -

a) It is "better" to apply for a work permit  (at the SA Embassy) in your country before moving to SA. (if you have special skills (of which there are a shortage in SA), obtaining a work permit should be much easier). I recommend you make an appointment at the SA Embassy UK to get more clarity.
b) Once married, your wife could register a small " home based" business in her name and you "work for her". I am not sure if this is 100% legal but many foreigners do this.

Although quite expensive, it may be worth it to contact a reputable immigration company in SA for assistance.

Hi steve, I work in this field.

To answer your question, yes you need to apply for a so-called section 11(6) visa with endorsement to work.
on this type of visa you can get an endorsement to work, study or conduct own business.

Keep in mind in case you change employers you need to have your visa changed as well.

Hi Stevezoe,

In a nutshell, yes. The 11 (6) visa allows you rights only to live with your partner/spouse legally in South Africa. Working rights arent automatically awarded and must be separately applied for (an endorsement on your life partner/spousal visa) if/when you havr a work offer from an employer.

You may also qualify for a critical skills visa if you're in the right field of work and have the right experience etc. You may also possible qualify for a general work permit, if the department of labour can certify that you are the best candidate for the position you have a work offer for. This one (general work permit) is a hard one.

So depending on your personal circumstances, you can apply for one of these. Marriage doesn't automatically award you any rights per se. Just grounds to apply for particular permits, which grounds you can potentially prove even withough marriage (ie I'm applying for an 11 (6) too but I'm not married to my partner. We have been together for a long time though.)

Good luck!

Hey everyone ! I will be applying for a spousal visa very soon. What are the chances to get a work endorsement if you submit a work contract with visa application? Also, typically what is the turn around time once you submit ?
Thanks

Hi Steve,

Changes are high that your endorsement to work will be granted if you submit a job offer with a SA employer.

Turnaround times depend a little on the place of submission. If you submit through any of the missions overseas the turnaround times are usually a little shorter. If applied from within South Africa you currently look at anywhere between 6-10 weeks.

Hope this is helpful.
Rgds Hans Kroll

The work contract is a key document - make sure you apply for the right specific visa.

I plan to submit the work contract at the time of applying for spousal visa at the SA Embassy in India. Does this actually extend the processing time ? Otherwise, I'll simply get an endorsement once I am in SA.

Hi. Did you come right with this?
I also need some assistance in this regard. I intend on marrying a Dominican woman in April. She will be here in SA for 6 weeks from the end of March. She is bringing along her Letter of no Impediment(incl. English Translation). I just want to get married so she can have a marriage certificate to go back home with and use to apply for a spousal visa at her embassy.
I want to make the appointment for the interview at Home Affairs and also get married there at the same time. How do I do this? Do I need to fill out the BI-31 form? Please assist.