It is time to renew your accreditation

Many businesses need to start preparing now to get ready for renewing their employer accreditation in 2024. Immigration NZ (INZ) recommends applying 6 weeks before the expiry date. Timing the application is important because the renewal date will be effective from the date of decision by INZ not 12 or 24 months forward from the current expiry date.

Most employers need to support the renewal application with documentation to prove the business is financially viable, and genuinely operating and that the undertakings provided to INZ in the first accreditation application have been fulfilled (completion of Employment NZ modules and that settlement support information was distributed to migrant workers).

A few businesses are exempt from the requirement to document financial viability and that they are genuinely operating. Exemptions apply to:

• New Zealand government departments
• Foreign governments including foreign missions (e.g. embassies and consulates)
• Crown entities, state-owned enterprises, non-listed companies where the crown is the majority shareholder or government departments included in the government reporting entity under the Public Finance Act 1989
• Local authorities, for example, councils
• State or state-integrated schools
• Publicly listed companies on the New Zealand Exchange (NZX) with at least 100 employees.

If your team hasn’t completed Employment NZ modules or not every migrant worker received settlement support information from you there is still time to get this sorted before applying. If the person in your organisation who was managing employer accreditation has left and no one is up to speed on where all the paperwork is at then we have a solution. Crucially don’t leave sorting this out until the last minute. We recommend employers review their accreditation records 4 to 6 months ahead of the expiry date to leave time to fix problems.  

Keeping accreditation valid is a worthwhile investment for your business. It helps you retain current migrant workers longer (if they qualify to extend work visas), recruit new migrant workers and support those who want to apply for residence and need employment for that application. If you are considering not renewing we recommend you check first whether anyone in your business may be negatively impacted by that decision. You might have a migrant worker planning to apply for residence, but you didn’t know. Without accreditation migrant workers (and their families) future in New Zealand may come to a crashing end.  

Expect processing delays at INZ as more renewal applications are lodged. Most businesses will qualify for “interim accreditation” if the renewal application is not decided before accreditation expires. INZ will email employers two weeks before the accreditation expiry date confirming interim accreditation has been granted. If you don't get this email you need to chase INZ. With interim accreditation, you can:

1. Apply for new job checks; and

2. Send a job token to an employee so they can apply for an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV)

Franchisee employer accreditation ends on 16 June. Any franchise businesses can then either renew or apply for the first time as either a standard (5 or fewer migrant workers) or high-volume employer.

On 16 June INZ will remove the requirement for employers to self-report non-compliance under the AEWV (e.g. someone working without a valid work visa, kept working while on an expired work visa etc). The requirement to report within 10 working days when a migrant worker has left your employment remains in place. Many employers have asked on what date the 10 working days start. It is 10 working days from the last date of employment. If a migrant worker's last workday was a Friday then count two weeks ahead and it’s the Friday of that second week which is the final date to notify INZ (assuming no public holidays in between).

Our employer team is on standby to help with your accreditation renewal application and answer any questions. Get in touch today.