From the 4th of July 2022 the new Immigration policy reset comes into practice and these are the new laws for employing a migrant worker. This is a Labour Government initiative and if you wish to hire a migrant after the 4th of July, you will need to apply for accreditation.

You won’t be able to legally hire a migrant as the application will not be processed, it will be returned as a “failed lodgement”.

Yes, because they will not have the correct visa to work for you, you can be fined up to $50,000.

There are minimum standards you must meet, for example hold a New Zealand Business Number, be able to prove you are a genuinely operating business (if you are unsure how to prove this, please ask us for guidance), have no recent history of regulatory non-compliance) etc. If you are a franchisee or labour hire company, there are additional accreditation requirements. You can find out more here.

We can apply for your company to move up to the high user category of 6 plus migrants, if you have any concerns about numbers just reach out and we will be there to guide you.

You do not have to do all these modules immediately but you must show that you have been doing them when your renewal comes around in 12 months time. Initially you must agree to do the modules and show evidence in 12 months that you have done so.

We can help you with this, we are already finalising job checks for our clients who are Accredited under this new system. We will make sure you are aware of all implications associated with hiring a migrant.

The actual processing time is determined by INZ but we can advise we have had many of our Accreditation Applications approved quickly. It will depend also on whether you have your documentation ready and it meets all the INZ requirements.

The decision is made solely by INZ and therefore we can’t guarantee a positive result, but we will not lodge an application if we are not confident of reasonable success. Our experience and knowledge plays a large part in our advice, we will guide you and provide our honest opinion on your application.

Generally, no, but there is a limited list of roles that are exempt from the median wage requirement. The exemption list includes roles in Construction and Infrastructure, Care Workforce and Tourism and Hospitality industries. Construction and Infrastructure, and Tourism and Hospitality must pay at least NZ$25.00 per hour and the Care Workforce sector must be paid at least NZ$25.39 per hour. In cases where someone is paid below the median wage and is on the exemption list they can only hold an Accredited employer work visa for 2 years and then must complete a stand-down period for 12 consecutive months outside New Zealand. If this sounds complicated or confusing please ask your Woburn adviser – we will walk you through each step.

We have been assisting companies for over 16 years and we can help you with your company policies, review what you have in place, make suggestions and walk you through what you need to do. This is important for any Accreditation application and needs to be in place before your application is lodged.

Our registered and experienced advisors have specialised in Employer Accreditation for the past 16 years – this isn’t new to our team, we were prepared for the new process hence many of our clients have already had their new Accreditation applications approved! We have been assisting companies within New Zealand, new and established, New Zealand owned / operated and international, for a very long time and we are very good at what we do.

We have a package that allows you to choose whether we assist with just your Accreditation Application or you can add on Job Checks, Migrant Check and Settlement Support (we also have a Relocation arm with Relocation Consultants based around New Zealand). We can walk you through all the steps, make sure you are prepared and ready to go.

Yes, but it is limited to high salary earners and certain roles that are in demand in New Zealand. High salary earners are those who earn twice the median wage (NZ$27.76) which is currently NZ$55.52 per hour or NZ$115,481.60 per annum. The specific roles are set out on a green list and include positions in construction, engineering, science, IT roles and registered health professionals.

We have a very experienced Relocation team, with Consultants based around New Zealand. We can provide a one-day service all the way to a premium offer. Just let us know what you are looking for and we can help.