Don’t get tripped up by the latest immigration changes

By EMA Advocacy and Stakeholder Engagement Lead Joanna Hall and Malcolm Pacific Immigration Advisor Hash Bihan

Even in a labour market that has more people available for work, immigration still plays an important piece in the puzzle around how employers find the right skills for their businesses.

There’s been a lot of change over the past year in the immigration space. Many of the changes are relatively small in scale but keeping across everything has been a challenge for employers.

Along with our partners at Malcolm Pacific Immigration, we’ve pulled together a comprehensive update on the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV).

We’ll also share some insights on what to keep in mind if you already employ migrants, even if you’re not currently planning on hiring. We’re aware of a few tricky areas emerging that employers need to be aware of as the penalties for getting it wrong have been increased.

We’re holding a webinar on these topics with Malcolm Pacific Immigration on 25 June where you’ll be able to ask specific questions of the team, so be sure to sign up to get more clarification!

Recent changes to the AEWV

• Accreditation
  • Employers no longer need to complete the Employment NZ online modules or give migrants time to do so. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) will instead provide relevant links that have employment rights and obligations at the appropriate points in the immigration process to both employers and workers. However, it is still required of employers to give settlement and support information within one month from the day the worker starts their contract.
  • Job Check
    • The median wage requirement has been removed; however, market rates are required to be paid and INZ is checking that wages offered are in line with this. This doesn’t impact on the wage requirements that AEWV holders need to apply for residency so it’s a good idea to be aware of the potential impact this may have on them. The change also doesn’t affect existing employment agreements.
    • Applicants now need only two years of relevant experience, not three, unless they have a qualification at Level 4 or higher on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) or a bachelor’s degree in any area. The job experience and qualification must be in the same field or industry as the job they’re applying for but if the qualification is bachelor’s degree or higher it can be in any field.
    • The engagement with Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ) around Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) Levels 4 & 5 roles is now declaration based, and employers can do this engagement process while advertising. There is also no longer a set 21-day timeframe for this engagement. Employers should be aware that this declaration is made in good faith, and they still need to be genuinely engaging around roles and interviewing potential candidates that might fit. From what Malcolm Pacific Immigration has noticed, INZ almost always requests evidence of an employer’s engagement with WINZ as part of the job check process.
    • The duration of advertising requirements has changed depending on the ANZSCO skill level. For Levels 1, 2, and 3, it’s 14 days; for Levels 4 and 5, it’s 21 days. There are some roles exempt from advertising, such as Green List roles or roles that pay over $59.32/hr.
• Visa
  • There are a range of changes to the pay rates that a migrant needs to earn in order to support various family members’ visa applications. As an employer, it’s good to understand that what you pay migrants can impact on their family so you can have discussions around their situations. The rates are:
    • To support a child, a migrant now needs to earn $55,844, along with other requirements around skills.
    • To support a partner, a migrant now needs to earn $26.85/hr, along with requirements around skills. However, partners will now get open work rights.
    • To support a parent, what a migrant must now be earning is indexed to the new median wage of NZD $33.56.
    • Many of these supporting visas have more details and requirements, so we’d encourage migrants to seek support from our dedicated immigration partners at Malcolm Pacific Immigration.
  • The visa duration for ANZSCO Level 4 and 5 roles is now three years, rather than two years with a one-year extension. For those employers who still have staff on the previous visa for two years, it’s worth checking if they have applied for their extension yet.
  • With the ANZSCO framework changing to the National Occupation List (NOL), there were a raft of changes to some ANZSCO Level 4 roles, which are now treated as level 3 to align with their skill level under the NOL. These are listed on the INZ site. There have been other sector-specific or role-specific changes as well. Check the INZ website for more details.

What you need to know if you already employ migrants and engage with the AEWV system:

When you do/don’t need to be accredited. There have been some questions from EMA Members about whether they can let their accreditation lapse if they aren’t immediately going hire new migrants. While there are some cases where you may not need it anymore, it’s important to keep in mind how this will impact your current migrant workers. For example, they may want to change visa, apply for residency, or potentially grow in their role with you.

When to start conversations if a migrant visa is nearing expiry. By its very nature the AEWV is a temporary work visa. This means there will need to be some discussions well ahead of the end of your migrant’s visa around what will happen. Ensure you’re following both employment law requirements as well as being aware of any immigration processes. The EMA’s AdviceLine is a great resource to establish what discussions you need to be having, and they can link you with Malcolm Pacific Immigration if you need further immigration advice. It is recommended that you have a well-managed internal system where you are notified at least six months ahead of a migrant worker’s visa expiry date, so you can start having these conversations to avoid a last-minute rush.

What are your migrant’s expectations around future visas/residency, etc? This can affect many different areas, from role progression and impacts on family members to pay rates and English language support. Be clear around your expectations of the role and the migrant but also be aware of their desires and where you can or can’t support them. Not all jobs will have a pathway to residence in New Zealand, and this is often misunderstood by many migrant workers as well as employers.

Check whether your business or any of your staff have AEWV applications currently underway. You need to be aware of what impact these recent changes may have had on the application.   

What are the most common issues with post-accreditation checks? INZ has flagged some areas where it’s seeing issues in post-accreditation checks on employers. It pays to be mindful of these areas to ensure you’re compliant:

• Financial viability and non-genuine business operations.
• Employers applying for an incorrect accreditation type, including employers who place their workers with controlling third parties applying for high-volume accreditation.
• Failure to provide accurate and timely responses to INZ following requests for information.
• Non-genuine attempts in recruiting New Zealand citizens and residents.
• Role and wage inflation (workers not performing the approved role and not receiving the approved wage rate for all hours worked).
• Businesses unable to meet the requirements of providing migrant workers with full-time employment in line with visa conditions.
• Businesses facilitating workers to breach visa conditions.
• Unlawful employment clauses or changes to employment arrangements that leverage the vulnerability of migrant workers.

The cost of getting it wrong

It’s very important to ensure you’re getting things right as the new Immigration Employment Infringement scheme has been very active in its first year, with 121 infringement notices issued and $363,000 in penalties.

Infringements mean a $1000 minimum fine, and a six-month stand-down from hiring migrants, which can have a significant impact on businesses as well as potential reputational risk.

Infringements can be issued for employing people in breach of their visa conditions, employing a person unlawfully in New Zealand, or failing to comply with a 10-day information request. INZ recommends that all employers check VisaView to ensure a potential migrant has the right to work for you.

Changes still to come in the immigration space

INZ is redesigning the Job Check step of the AEWV to streamline things for low-risk employers. What this will look like is still unclear, but we will keep Members updated as soon as we have further information.

Residency pathways: Immigration Minister Hon. Erica Stanford has signalled that there will be a review of pathways to residency in 2025, and this will cross both the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) and the Green Lists. We have provided initial feedback from the EMA and our Members on this, but we understand work is ongoing so we will update you when we find out more.

Seasonal work visas are to be introduced in November 2025. Final details for the visas and what roles will be covered are yet to be released.

The ANZSCO framework is changing to the NOL, as mentioned earlier. This will influence immigration policy. However, aside from some of the roles being reclassified already, it remains to be seen what the transition will look like.

This article is intended as high-level information sharing and should not be taken as advice on any specific cases. If you need support, please refer to the INZ website and reach out to Malcolm Pacific Immigration with any questions.

The EMA is proud to partner with immigration professionals Malcolm Pacific to keep our Members up to date on immigration policy.

EMA Members receive free assessments and free quick advice from experienced Licensed Immigration Advisers at Malcolm Pacific Immigration and 10% discounted professional fees for visa services.

Call the EMA’s AdviceLine on 0800 300 362 to connect with Malcolm Pacific.

Find out more here: Exclusive Benefits for EMA Members – Malcolm Pacific Immigration