New Zealand as a study abroad destination is getting really popular among international students which makes a New Zealand work visa essential. Over 20,000 study abroad students are currently residing in New Zealand to complete their educational endeavours. As per reports, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) predicts average annual GDP growth of about 2.7 per cent and 2.5 per cent over 2018-23 and 2023-28 respectively. The government’s Ministry of Business growth at these rates means New Zealand will need nearly 40,000 new workers a year and almost half of these will be in sectors like Accommodation and Food services, Business services, Construction or Retail trade.
New Zealand is also famous for being a country which offers quality of living to its international student population, and has been known for maintaining a work-life balance. For pursuing a bachelors program, the tuition fee for international candidates ranges between 22,000 NZD to 32,000 NZD, and for a masters program, the fee ranges between 26,000 NZD to 37,000 NZD. Additionally, the cost of living in New Zealand stands at 20,000 NZD to 25,000 NZD annually. Also, the average salary received by an international student upon graduation is observed to be around 90,000 NZD to 100,000 NZD. To be eligible to start earning in New Zealand, international students are required to possess a New Zealand work visa.
New Zealand Work Visa: Types and Eligibility
New Zealand offers international candidates with numerous options for work visas. There are also sectors where the skilled work has a shortage and the New Zealand government easily grants a work visa for New Zealand in those fields and sectors.
The six options that international candidates can choose from for their work visas are given below:
Skilled Migrant Work Visa
The eligibility requirements for the skilled migrant work visa are as follows:
- Age below 55
- Occupation on the skill shortage list
- Job offer from New Zealand employer
- Meet minimum english proficiency requirements
- 160 points on the invitation to apply
Partner Work Visa
An invitation to apply is a criteria wherein the New Zealand government judges an applicant, and only selects him/her if he/she deems fit to stay in New Zealand. The judgement is based after an applicant submits an expression of interest, elaborating in detail why he/she should receive a New Zealand work visa.
Applicants can easily score on the invitation to apply if they fulfill the following criteria:
- Qualifications
- Work experience
- Skilled employment
- Age
- Certain bonus points
- Partner’s score
Essential Skill Work Visa
Applicants can get hold of the essential skills work visa in New Zealand only if their work is listed on the essential services list.
The eligibility criteria for the essential skill work visa is as follows:
- Work listed on essential services list
- Possess necessary skills to perform the job
- Full time job offer from an employer from New Zealand
- Remuneration is according to ANZSCO level of the occupation
Just like the skilled migrant work visa, applicants for essential skill work visas are also allowed to get a visa on a point based system. Applicants need to score 100 points on the invitation to apply after submitting an expression of interest.
Entrepreneur Work Visa
For candidates willing to start their entrepreneurial journey in New Zealand, this is the perfect work visa. The New Zealand government offers entrepreneurial work visas if an individual is starting his/her own business, or buying an existing business in New Zealand.
The visa is further split into two cases:
- Startup: an early one year visa stage to start or buy a business
- Balance: a two year period to establish the business
The requirements for the entrepreneur work visa are:
- 100,000 NZD investment capital
- Good business character
- A business plan which is comprehensive
- English proficiency requirements
- 120 points in assessment
Specific Purpose Work Visa
This is a short work visa wherein individuals are granted work visa based on short visits that may be in the form of business assignment visits, judging a show, working on a film set, installing equipment and others.
New Zealand Work Visa: Application Fees
Each category of New Zealand work-visa requires a certain application fee. Most of the types have the same application whereas few have different. Given below are the application fees for applying for various type of work visa in New Zealand:
| Type of visa | Application fee (in NZD) |
|---|---|
| Skilled migrant visa | 530 |
| Entertainers work visa | 530 |
| Entrepreneurs work visa | 3,365 |
| Essential skills work visa | 495 |
| Student and trainee visa | 530 |
New Zealand Work Visa: Requirements
Applicants are required to submit a few documents while applying for New Zealand immigration. Given below are the basic requirements when applying for a New Zealand work visa:
- Photographs
- Valid passport
- Birth certificate
- Job offer from an employer in New Zealand
- Police certificate
- Character and identity certificate
- Medical certificates
- Translated documents in english
New Zealand Work Visa: Before You Leave
Before an individual leaves his/her country, he/she is required to follow some essential steps in order to settle in New Zealand. Let’s follow the checklist down below:
- Keep your documents handy, some most important documents that are required include:
- Birth certificate
- Marriage certificate (if available)
- References
- Resume or CV
- Academic qualifications
- International driver’s license or permit
- Find a job
- In order to receive a work visa in New Zealand, an individual is required to have a secured job through a registered employer in New Zealand. There are some potential sectors where there is a dearth of jobs, individuals if applying for jobs beforehand can research well on these sectors. Some of them are tabulated below:
| Field | Type of Shortage |
|---|---|
| Construction | Long term shortage |
| Education | Regional shortage |
| Engineering | Long term shortage, Regional shortage |
| Business | Long term shortage |
| Transport | Construction and infrastructure shortage |
| Science | Long term shortage |
- Research on your living area
- Manage your finances well
New Zealand Work Visa: Application Process
- The New Zealand work visa can be applied online through the RealMe portal.
- Applicants need to submit a visa application fee according to the work visa that they are applying for.
- Applicants are then required to submit the immigration forms as well as the required documents in order to complete their visa application process.
New Zealand Work Visa: Decision Time
After applying for a New Zealand work visa, applicants are required to wait till the decisions are released. Given below is the average time taken by the New Zealand government to process an individual work or student visa application:
| Visa | 50% application processes | 75% applications processed | 90% applications processed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential skills | 41 days | 69 days | 90 days |
| Post study work visa | 14 days | 24 days | 42 days |
| Skilled migrant visa | 24 months | 26 months | 29 months |
| Permanent resident visa | 58 days | 85 days | 5 months |
Tips for settling in New Zealand
Certain tips and tricks can help students to live in New Zealand after completing their degree
- Try and meet more people
- New Zealand pays a lot of attention towards work-life balance, and so you can easily get the best of both worlds when in New Zealand.
- Find ways to cope up with homesickness
- Understand the Maori culture, and try to fit in
- New Zealand also offers individuals with a lot of volunteering options in numerous fields
- Keep communicating with the locals.
New Zealand is filled with kind hearted people, and there is ample support provided to individuals and families coming from international cultures and societies, students after completing their graduation can easily get hold of the post study work visa, and also have an advantage of already existing student experience of studying in New Zealand. As for individuals seeking work visas for the first time, it is crucial to carry required documents at all times, and make the most when in New Zealand. The New Zealand government also very much promotes business ideas, and supports entrepreneurial activities of every sort.
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