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.  

• Increased government visa application fees took effect on 1 October 2024. There are substantial increases across most visa types.  

• Work Visa applications lodged under the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme with job offers and applicants who fully meet the requirements of the Green List are now prioritised. To be at the front of the queue the AEWV application must be fully documented. Miss out any key documents or information and the application may go to the back of the queue or risk being declined.

• A review of the AEWV scheme is underway. Expect changes in 2025 to speed up processing times across all three gateways. Removal of the median wage altogether as a requirement for job offers will disappear as part of the government coalition agreement.  

• Partners of New Zealand citizens or residents may now be eligible for a temporary visa (work or visitor) that is valid for up to three years (up from two years). Big bonus for those wanting to be in New Zealand for a longer period or while waiting for a residence application to be processed may avoid multiple temporary visa renewals.

• The Skilled Migrant category (points system) and Green List are up for review in 2025. The exact timetable for any changes is unknown.

• A new Parent Visitor Visa is expected to go live in late 2025. The government campaigned on a special visa for parents visa that would be valid for 5 years and extendable up to another 5 years (allowing a maximum stay of 10 years). Expect some sort of medical/travel insurance requirements to avoid parents holding these visas becoming a burden on the public health system.

• An anomaly in the rules for bus and truck drivers on a pathway to residence was preventing them from bringing close family (partners and young children) to New Zealand. This has now been fixed.

• ANZSCO (Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations) is being replaced in November 2024 when Statistics NZ rolls out a New Zealand only version. ANZSCO will continue to be used by Immigration NZ to assess skilled (work and residence) visa applications until they bring the new Statistics tool onboard. Expect this to change sometime in 2025.

• The deadline to apply for a visitor visa for anyone wanting to be in New Zealand by Christmas is 15 October 2024.

Get in touch today with our dedicated team of employer specialists.