Marisa Jacobs | Managing Director | Xpatweb | mail me |
Almost 80% of multinational and large corporations in South Africa experience ongoing difficulty recruiting critically skilled individuals. This highlights the severity of the talent shortage and its impact on business development. The situation underscores the persistent critical skills shortages affecting multiple sectors.
Our findings are supported by the World Economic Forum Jobs Report 2025. The report reveals that more than 60% of businesses operating in South Africa view skills gaps as a key barrier to achieving meaningful transformation by 2030. Additionally, over 31% cite the inability to attract skilled talent as a major obstacle to future growth.
As the global competition for critical skills intensifies, now is the time for business leaders to speak out about the skills they cannot source locally. Every day a role remains unfilled due to unavailable local talent is a day of lost productivity and opportunity. This is not just a race against time; it’s a race for economic competitiveness and South Africa must gain momentum.
Add your voice through comprehensive critical skills survey
Our Critical Skills Survey 2025 offers corporations the opportunity to contribute to the robust process currently underway to update the National Critical Skills List.
It is vital that businesses participate and share their real-world insights into the skills they are looking for. This input will help ensure the revised Critical Skills List accurately reflects industry needs. It also ensures that South Africa’s immigration and visa framework enables timely access to urgently needed skilled professionals.
The list fast-tracks the recruitment of global talent into South Africa if their specific occupation appears on the list. Once included, the listed occupation is intended to benefit from a smoother and expedited Critical Skills Work Visa application.
The Department of Home Affairs (DHA), responsible for publishing the final Critical Skills List, defines critical skills as those crucial for economic growth. Without them, certain projects and work could not be undertaken. The updated list is expected later in 2025.
Since 2017, our Critical Skills Survey has grown into the most authoritative private-sector dataset. With more than 500 verified employer respondents, the survey identifies the skills most difficult to find. It also highlights the roles that must be recruited internationally due to critical skills shortages.
As in previous years, the findings will be shared with relevant government departments, including the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). DHET drafts the Critical Skills List and views the survey as a validation of its own data. It offers a high-level view of occupation clusters that are difficult to fill domestically. As such, the Critical Skills Survey directly supports evidence-based updates to and inclusion on the Critical Skills List.
Tackling more important issues in 2025 survey
To understand the daily issues corporations face when recruiting global professionals, this year’s survey touches on the following:
- Does the latest Critical Skills List cater for the skills your business needs?
- What qualification level is required for the occupation(s) you are struggling to fill?
- What skills and experience are needed to fill the occupation(s)?
- To what extent do critical skilled vacancies in your organisation impact operational success and stakeholders?
- Do you perceive the work visa process as a prohibitor to recruit internationally?
- Do you think that dual career and partner issues are becoming more important to your organisation?
The 2025 Survey is the first since the implementation of the Trusted Employer Scheme (TES) and the introduction of the new Points-Based System (PBS) for adjudicating Critical Skills and General Work Visa applications.
The introduction of the Points-Based System and Trusted Employer Scheme signals a shift toward a modernised immigration regime. Its success hinges on feedback from business. Only those hiring critically skilled professionals daily can assess whether the system delivers on its promises of speed, clarity, and efficiency.
Participants will also be asked to share the benefits and challenges of being recognised as a Trusted Employer, particularly regarding faster visa processing and reduced documentation requirements.
Prior surveys revealed crippling shortages
Since 2017, businesses indicated it is an uphill battle to recruit engineers, ICT professionals, artisans, foreign language speakers and C-Suite executives.
The 2024 Survey once again showed engineering as the most in-demand skill, with 23% of respondents experiencing shortages. It aligns with data from the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA).
For example, South Africa has 1 engineer for every 3,100 people, compared to Germany, which has 1 engineer for every 200 people.
Helping business, helping South Africa
By targeting foreign skilled professionals with expertise needed to boost economic growth, the country will also address critical skills shortages, foster innovation and pave the way for a more prosperous future for all citizens.
Operation Vulindlela quoted estimates by National Treasury that eliminating the shortage of critical skills can raise potential GDP by up to 1.3 percentage points above the baseline in a 12-year period. The demand for skilled workers is also expected to boost employment and the demand for semi- and unskilled workers.
We’re at a pivotal moment. Our ability to influence immigration policy with real-world business data is unprecedented. The Critical Skills Survey is more than feedback. It is the key to unlocking a future-ready workforce and fixing the structural gap in South Africa’s talent pipeline.
Strategic immigration is not about bypassing local talent; it is about complementing it. By filling high-impact roles with scarce global skills, we strengthen our industries, transfer knowledge and create room for growth and investment that benefits every South African.
