IMMIGRATION: Pacific Island people pay immigration consultants thousands of dollars to help them get into New Zealand but it isn’t money well spent, a report released today says. The PriceWaterhouseCoopers report, written in December 2006, said the Immigration Services’ Pacific Division estimated about 75 percent of applicants used the services of agents or consultants to help them with their residence applications. "The fees charged by these agents or consultants -- often... more>

MIGRATION: Zero tolerance of racial discrimination is identified in a top-10 checklist compiled by employers of skilled migrants. The checklist comes from employers in industry sectors such as dairying, bakery and accountancy and is part of a new Human Rights Commission publication, Brain Gain: Migrant Workers in New Zealand. "There are many stories of the barriers and discrimination that migrant workers face in accessing decent employment," Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner Dr... more>

EXPAT SURVEY: New Zealanders remain confident about their country and strongly committed to its destiny even while living and working overseas, a survey of Kiwi expats in Europe has found. "I want to experience and travel the world before coming home to settle down"; "I am planning to return [to New Zealand] and build a business there," were typical comments received in the survey by global network Kea New Zealand and national airline Air New Zealand. "New Zealand is the best, but as a Kiwi... more>

ASIA: As New Zealand continues to build its economic ties with Asia, the number of Asians living here will continue to increase and will eventually overtake the Maori population, according to a new report. The Asia New Zealand Foundation study, Asians in New Zealand: Implications of a Changing Demography, found that the closer economic ties would have a profound effect on New Zealand’s population. For the past 20 years, successive New Zealand governments, the business community, and... more>

VISAS: New Zealanders intending visit the United Kingdom for up to six months will continue to have free visa access, Prime Minister Helen Clark said today. New Zealanders’ traditional right of entry to Britain was at risk because of the rise in immigrant numbers, but its government had decided to keep the access open. However a decision on ancestral visas was yet to be made. "The British Home Office has announced overnight its intention to keep the maximum visa free access for... more>

MIGRATION: A seasonally adjusted net inflow of 1000 permanent and long term (PLT) arrivals to this country in May was the highest figure since December 2006, Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) said today. Despite that, actual PLT departures exceeded arrivals by 1300 last month, compared to a net PLT outflow of 1600 in May 2007. Between December 2006 and February this year, monthly net PLT migration had been decreasing when compared with the same month of the previous year, SNZ said. Last month... more>

The Royal New Zealand Navy is an innovative and dynamic organisation that makes a significant contribution, both in New Zealand and globally. Our maritime capability is delivered through our ships and our people and the ‘right’ people are the most important element of this capability. Everyone has the opportunity to contribute to making the Navy a world class organisation and our culture encourages people to use their skills to ‘make a difference’. The Navy of today... more>

The most important thing to remember when submitting your application for residence or work visas in New Zealand is to check and double check that you have submitted all of the required documents with your application. Apart from your passport and photographs we recommend that you submit certified copies of most documents. Application forms for the various categories specify which documents must be originals and which can be copies. If necessary branch staff can sight originals and... more>

If you are applying for New Zealand residence via the Skilled Migrant Category a job offer in New Zealand makes a huge difference to your eligibility. In New Zealand most jobs are advertised in newspapers or on job and company websites. Most of these jobs are filled quickly, often within a month, which you need to bear in mind when applying. Instead, you could join an agency to search for work on your behalf or keep an eye on UK publications which employers advertise in to attract migrants.... more>

The Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) for residence in New Zealand works on a points system. If you earn 100 points or more, based on criteria such as qualifications, work experience and New Zealand job offer, you can submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) into the SMC pool. Every two weeks EOIs are ranked, a selection is made from the pool, and selected people are verified and invited to apply for residence. Each selection is adjusted to make sure enough applicants are selected to meet the... more>