Working for a South African company while living in Aus

[Chantel]

Hi Guys, 

 

Quick question... we are hoping to get answer on our visa by Dec. Applied for skilled 189 visa.

 

My husbands company in South Africa REALLY don't want to loose him as he is an integral part of their engineering staff... he currently works all over the world and travels a lot. So living in Aus would not make a huge difference as he can simply travel from there...

 

As far as I understand, there are no conditions on the 189 Visa ITO work?? Hope I'm right... I'm just wondering how tax will work in Aus if he is being paid by a South African company? Can you point me in the direction of someone who can assist with this or is knowledgeable on the topic?

 

One last thing... If we do manage to be out of SA next year Jan, what happens to this current years tax returns? Should we hand our stuff over to a tax consultant and give them consent to act our behalf? and keep our FNB account open for any refunds due?

 

Thanks guys, Just figured if anyone knows someone on this forum will.

Chantel

[RichardH]

I'm not answering your specific questions, but I know of someone who did this exact same thing for 3 years, but he was in Aus (specialized IT development work which can be done remotely) and not travelling working for a SA company.

The problems he faced:

1. Being paid in ZAR and living in Aus just means a constant pay cut as the ZAR de-values. How far will a ZAR salary go in Aus?

2. He was never able to network properly in the Aus workforce, so when issue 1. became too much he really struggled to get into the Aus workforce because he did not have Australian experience.

 

He has since found work in Aus and all is back on track again.

However appealing it was having work / income in Aus from the word go, he should have started looking for work in Aus as soon as possible.

Anyway these are just the practical considerations.

I'm sure one of the tax experts on the forum will be able to answer your main questions.

[Waylander]

Tax: Australia and ZAR are residence based taxation systems - seeing as you will be coming over on a 189 you will be seen as resident in Aus for tax and will need to pay Aussie tax.  You will also need to go through a few hoops with SARS to prove you are NOT resident in ZAR and so do not pay tax there.   

 

As @RichardH says,  the ZAR vs Aus$ earnings (solvable by having the South African country paying him in US$ or Aus$) and lack of Aussie XP will be an issue.

 

Also, if your husband has to do a lot of travel, then there may be an issue when trying to get a RRV (returning residents visa) or apply for citizenship, both of which have requirements for number of days spent in Australia. 

 

There is no requirement for you to work in Aus for a 189 - once you get it you have multiple entry rights for 5 years - even if you just balles bak on the beach for all the time.  Might be a problem if you need finance in Aus - trying to prove employment though......

[SandraDee]

We earn in South Africa , pay the tax in south africa as that is where it is paid  and then get given the tax credit on the Aussie side.  

[TeeTMI]

There is a guy on here - @Hugo2 who if I remember correctly provides accounts/tax services across both Australia/South Africa. 

Edited November 22, 2016 by TeeTMI

[Mara]

He could always work as a contractor for the company in South Africa and send them a monthly invoice for payment. I work as a contractor for a NZ company and that is exactly what I do, my taxes are only paid in Australia.