Holiday Hours: Our offices close from 5.30pm, Wednesday, 18 December and reopen 8.30am on Monday, 6 January 2025. If you need urgent assistance during the holidays call 0800 800 612 to talk to a Licensed Immigration Adviser. Wishing you and your family safe and happy holidays!
Getting a migrant worker into your team takes skill
New Zealand faces double trouble on the economic front – shortages of skilled workers and woeful productivity. It should be easy then for you to get.
New Zealand faces double trouble on the economic front – shortages of skilled workers and woeful productivity.
It should be easy then for you to get a keen and skilled migrant with a work visa – right?
No, it’s hard enough to get a skilled migrant if they are already in New Zealand but even tougher if they are offshore.
Yet there is a need for speed.
Think of getting that worker at your work place as a hurdles race. Some races are longer than others, but they include similar jumps – qualifications, health checks, character tests, family situation … there’s a myriad of them.
Our licensed immigration advisers are highly trained hurdlers. Malcolm Pacific Immigration was able to lodge 35 work visa applications for one employer inside a day.
But starting at the beginning, let’s look at New Zealand’s skills shortages. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has three lists that record the skill shortages and a list of skilled occupations:
- Long Term Shortage – where the job must pay more than NZ$45,000
- Essential skills – may not need to advertise the job but your worker has to meet all the requirements on the list.
- Canterbury region list – where especially tradespeople are still needed
INZ says if the job you want to hire for is on one of these lists, it means suitable New Zealanders are hard to find and a visa can be granted to a qualified worker from overseas.
But it is not as easy as that sounds.
INZ has remuneration thresholds it uses to decide whether the job is really for a skilled migrant.
If the job is not on the list then the burden is on the employer to prove they cannot find locals for the job.
Small to medium sized businesses may have to prove they can afford to employ a migrant worker.
There’s lot to navigate and if you get it wrong it can be expensive, time consuming and frustrating.
Further tips
- Keep employment agreements current
- Have up to date HR policies in place
- Have wage and time records readily available
INZ and the Labour inspectorate are working more closely these days. INZ is naming and shaming non-compliant employers. Burger King was the latest employer to face a one-year ban on employing migrant workers.
Lukas Sousa is your contact person at Malcolm Pacific Immigration for visa advice.
News
Malcolm Pacific Immigration keeps ahead of immigration changes. Sign up below to our newsletter to keep up to date.
Immigration headlines for employers
The team at Malcolm Pacific Immigration keep across the constant changes in immigration rules and regulations. Here is the latest roundup of interest to businesses and HR teams.
Employer Accreditation – pain points
There is a level of frustration at the current processing delays across the three gateways of the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme.
Immigration and employers have been busy
There is a level of frustration at the current processing delays across the three gateways of the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme.
Get started with a free assessment today
We are New Zealand’s largest and most experienced team of licensed immigration advisers. Our experts take away the stress and worry of navigating the complicated world of immigration. All you need to do is get in touch. Our team is on standby, ready to help.
