New Zealand employers who cannot find suitable New Zealanders for a role, can apply to hire migrants on the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV).
The purpose of the accreditation process is to ensure that the New Zealand business is viable, meets immigration and employment standards, and will not exploit the migrants they may hire.
The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) is a temporary work visa.
There are now 3 steps to hiring a migrant on an AEWV: Accreditation, the job check and the AEWV application.
Once the employer is accredited they have to advertise their role and get a job check to ensure that there are no suitable New Zealanders they could hire and train before they offer the role to a migrant from overseas.
Employers can apply for accreditation .
Only accredited employers can hire a migrant worker on the AEWV.
They need accreditation in the new system – even if they are accredited under the current system.
The accreditation levels are:
Franchisees and employers wanting to place migrants on AEWVs with third parties (including labour hire companies) will need to meet additional criteria to get accredited.
Employers can apply for a job check.
The following principles apply to the job check:
Some job checks will also involve a labour market test.
When a labour market test is required:
When a labour market test is not required:
In the cities (Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton and Dunedin):
Migrants can apply for this temporary work visa.
The migrant worker must show they meet:
Employers must complete the employer accreditation process before migrants can apply for a work visa. This is an employer led process, see above.
The Essential Skills Work Visa will close to applications on 3 July 2022.
Current temporary work visas will not be affected, as long as visa conditions are still being met and the visa remains valid.
Different to the current system, the new regulations do not provide a designated pathway to residence. There are 'rumours' that this might be introduced at a later stage.
With Residence from Work Visa applications underway however (requiring a further Work to Residence visa to be granted residence), applicants will be able to continue this process if they remain with their current employer.
The great work done before has surely helped to achieve this quick positive result. NZIC are really professional and know what to do when to do it and how to do it. That is so convenient and efficient! I’m still working with them for the next steps and would like to thank them again for their help and support. Thank you. Kind Regards.
Anna was worth her weight in gold---she was fantastic at helping me format my CV and search for jobs that suited my skill set. In the end, I got a great job in a great city. Carsten and his team were very thorough and helpful when it came time to apply for and get our visas. They are now helping us with our resident visas, and I'm certain that the process will be the same. I'd recommend them highly.
NZIC guided me all the way through getting my first work visa to permanent residency. Their job seeking support was key when I first arrived in NZ, communication was always easy and clear. I'm very thankful for their help and definitely recommend their services.
Dear Jannie, just want to drop a note to thank for your everything. Your help is much appreciated! You are a wonderful and professional job search coach! I am so lucky to have you supporting me!
