Immigration changes – headlines for employers

• A new work visa just launched for seasonal workers. The visa is valid for up to 9 months and is restricted to "seasonal work" (e.g. wine makers, ski instructors, tree planters etc). Employers must be accredited, the job is is advertised for 2 weeks, pays $29.66 per hour or more and the work is for at least 30 hours a week. Applications for this visa are open until until 31 March 2025.

• Job checks are taking much longer to process. Avoid some of the common problems. The job advert online must be closed off before applying for a job check. Check employment agreements are up to date and reflect current employment laws. Job adverts must include the pay rate or pay range. Don't inflate the job description.

• When workers move into new roles in your business or to another region of NZ make sure they secure a job change allowing them to work in the new role or region. This is tripping employers up and there are risks to maintaining accreditation.

• Following the outage of the accreditation renewal system last month the Employer Accreditation expiry date has changed. The “official” expiry date is the beginning of the day after the date specified as the expiry date. For example, if the expiry date is Monday, 19 August 2024 then accreditation expires at 12.01 am on Tuesday, 20 August 2024. Avoid the stress – apply to renew at least 6 weeks before the expiry date.

• Only around 30% of employers have applied to renew accreditation. This is a worrying trend as many migrant workers can only apply for another work visa or skilled residence if their employer is accredited.

• The dairy industry received some welcome relief for farm workers who require an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV). For a brief period, workers were exempt from the 3-year work experience or Level 4 qualification and English language requirements. AEWV applications for farm workers will be fast-tracked until 01/09/2024. This helps with the busy season on farms.

• Around 50% of Skilled Residence applications are incomplete when lodged. Immigration NZ expects applications to be 100% correct when they hit the desk of an Immigration Officer. If requests for more information are not satisfied in full within 10 working days an application may be declined. Around 73% of people who were declined residence did not use an adviser.

• Transit visa applications are now online. From 4/9/2024 Fijian citizens transiting (on the way to or from Fiji) through Auckland no longer need a transit visa. They do need to apply and receive an NZ Travel Authority (NZeTA) before boarding a flight to New Zealand.

• Annual caps for migrant workers in the meat processing, seafood processing (onshore) and seafood (sea-based) industries have been extended for 12 months to provide relief for employers in these sectors who struggle to find sufficient workers locally for this type of work.

Our immigration advisers keep up to speed with changes to immigration policy and visa rules. If have any questions just get in touch.