South Africans are pretty good at staying positive in the face of general upheaval, and you only need to look at Facebook groups like #ImStaying to see people trying to focus on keeping it that way.

Still, the green mamba isn’t the world’s most powerful passport, and it never hurts to have a so-called ‘Plan B’, in terms of alternative citizenship.

There are a number of ways to go about doing that, with citizenship through investment programs proving popular, and many South Africans have also looked at Portugal as an option.

For those who are entrepreneurial-minded, that’s a great place to start.

Portugal

• Portugal’s Highly-Qualified Activity Residence Visa is another great option for entrepreneurs wanting to launch a start-up in Europe. All these start-up businesses go through a formal three-year incubation programme at one of the government research and development facilities, managed by a very experienced start-up management team.
• Entrepreneurs can choose how involved they would like to be in the development of the business concept, as it progresses through the development process. The cost of the three-year incubation programme is €175 000 (around R2,85 million).
• While the Portugal Highly-Qualified Activity Residence Visa offers the same residency benefits as the Golden Visa, there is no minimum residency requirement, so the entrepreneur has complete freedom around how much or how little time they wish to spend in Portugal.

That last bit is important, as there’s no need to worry about spending a prescribed amount of time there each year in order to tick certain boxes.

Canada

• The Canada Start-up Visa (SUV) incubation programme is a direct route to Permanent Residency for entrepreneurs looking to emigrate to Canada. This programme is only suitable for active and experienced entrepreneurs, that are ready to relocate to Canada on a permanent basis.
• The cost of the two-year SUV programme is Canadian $230 000 (around R2,6 million), and includes the applicant’s subscription to the Global Start-up Accelerator Curriculum.

Please be warned that Canadians are some of the nicest and most welcoming people on the planet.

The UK

• Tier 1 Start-up and Tier 1 Innovator Visas enable entrepreneurs to launch businesses in the UK. Entrepreneurs are required to prove that the business is innovative, viable, and scalable in order to qualify.
• This is also a great option for entrepreneurs with their own businesses in South Africa, that would like to expand to the UK.
• The minimum investment required is £50 000 (around R950 000). Visas are issued for three years, after which entrepreneurs can apply for settlement and ultimately qualify for residency.

In terms of securing alternative citizenship or residency, any option coming in at under a million rand is impressive.

Again, for those who are keen to explore the option of a Plan B, these above are just a starting point.

To find out which route best suits your needs (and budget), get in touch with the professionals over at Immigration South Africa. They have offices on Bree Street in Cape Town, and you can also speak to one of their immigration experts on 021 001 2109.

Alternatively, pop them an email at info@immigrationsouthafrica.com.

Just don’t mention anything about it on #ImStaying, alright?