The Arrival Pack · ebook
Everything you need to land well.
Twelve chapters on where to live, how to buy, how to move your money, and who to call — written for people who have already decided on South Africa.
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What is inside
Twelve chapters. One trusted sequence.
01
Where to live
- Honest comparison of the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Inland
- Weather, schooling, flight connections, getting around and indicative property prices for each
- Where bush, beach and wine actually overlap — and where they don't
02
Schools
- How the IEB, state and Cambridge/IB curriculum routes differ, and which suits a family that may move on again
- Public, independent, international and group schools — fee ranges and how admission really works
- A shortlist of named schools per region, categorised by sector, intake and religious foundation
- The documents every school will ask for, and why you apply before you have an address
03
Property
- Foreigners can buy freely, in their own name — but you need a SARS tax number to transfer, buying or selling
- The purchase step by step, from offer to registration, and why there's no general cooling-off period
- Full cost picture beyond the price: transfer duty, conveyancing, bond registration, compliance certificates
- Bonds for non-residents, the conveyancing fraud risk, and three established agencies per region
04
Moving money into South Africa
- How exchange control actually works, and why resident, non-resident and temporary resident are three different things
- The paper trail to keep on every rand you bring in — the single thing that decides whether you can take capital out later
- Declaring foreign assets on taking up permanent residence
- Where the real cost sits: the spread, not the transfer fee
05
Tax
- The two residency tests SARS applies, and why one is about intention rather than days
- Worldwide income as a resident versus South African-source income as a non-resident
- Income tax, CGT, estate duty, the foreign pension exemption and the foreign employment income exemption
- Provisional tax and the exit charge — the two things almost everybody misses
06
Relocation & shipping
- Realistic door-to-door timings by origin, for sea and air freight
- The customs rebate on used household effects, and the ITAC permit your mover must apply for
- Why you should almost never ship the car
- Named international and South African movers, and how to compare quotes properly
07
Pets
- The fixed sequence — microchip, rabies, titre test, import permit, health certificate — and why the order matters
- Airline restrictions on snub-nosed breeds and temperature embargoes
- Ticks, biliary and the other risks nobody warns new arrivals about
- Pet insurance providers, waiting periods and age limits
08
Medical cover
- How South African medical schemes differ from insurance: open enrolment, community rating and Prescribed Minimum Benefits
- The three things that cost you — general and condition-specific waiting periods, and the permanent late-joiner penalty
- Why gap cover is not optional
- Which schemes and plan types suit newcomers, with indicative family costs
09
Medical care on call
- The numbers to save in every phone in your first week
- Private emergency services, armed response medical dispatch and the national poisons line
- When to use an emergency unit, a retail clinic or a virtual GP
- What to set up in your first month, including scripts and a family GP
10
Driving licences
- When your foreign licence is valid as it stands, and when it needs a translation or IDP
- The twelve-month conversion window that opens on permanent residence
- Traffic Register Numbers, testing centres and what conversion requires
- Practical notes on driving here, from tolls to rural roads after dark
11
Visas & immigration
- Every route mapped: Critical Skills, General Work, Intra-Company Transfer, Business, Remote Work
- Retired Person's, Spousal, Relative's, Study and Visitor's visas, with qualifying criteria
- Both doors to permanent residence, including the financial independence route
- The traps — overstaying, working on the wrong visa, document expiry, and where you must apply from
12
Travelling in Southern Africa
- Kruger, Madikwe, Zululand, the Cape, the Drakensberg and the Kgalagadi
- Namibia, Botswana, Victoria Falls and Mozambique — what's now a weekend away
- Three recommended travel companies
- What you need before you cross a border with children or a financed vehicle
Plus
Your first ninety days
A sequenced checklist from six months out to day ninety, with the items that block everything else flagged first.
Every purchase includes a complimentary 30-minute private consultation. Read the pack first, then bring your three hardest questions — we’ll tell you plainly where the plan will break, and introduce you to the specialists you need by name.