Planning to be a skilled migrant or bring mum and dad to NZ?

Skilled migrants - the clock is ticking.

If you have been considering applying for residence to secure a future in New Zealand then now is the time to lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI). Do not delay.

Proposed law changes expected to be passed next week are a clear signal by the government to suspend the EOI system for up to 3 months. This may lead to other changes such as the pass mark or eligibility criteria. There are already over 11,000 Skilled Migrant residence applications in the queue covering around 30,000 people. Many have been waiting for over a year to be processed. Does the government want to attract more applications when they have huge numbers already in the queue and an expected sharp rise in unemployment? On top of this Immigration NZ has limited capacity to process EOIs and residence applications right now.

Lodging an EOI is not a guarantee you will be invited to apply for residence in the future. However, delaying may mean unexpected rule changes and pathways to lodge an EOI closed when you do want to move forward.

Parents wanting to become residents.

The same advice applies if you were planning to bring your parents to New Zealand. Lodge an EOI now before this pathway closes for up to 3 months.