August 2009

Some of the highlights this month are the below in bullet points;

• The man behind the alleged passport scam is now facing 39 fraud related charges.
• A former Mangere PM has been found guilty of 26 charges.
• It appears that the property market has found some stability, in Auckland that is. The remainder of the country will follow in the months to come. It is also said that a shortage of property listings appear to ensure an increase of the house prices.
• The New Zealand economic recovery appears to boost the New Zealand currency, good news for importers, bad news for exporters.
• One of the reasons given for this economical improvement is migration.
• Mr Michael Law engaged in a hot sipute on how to spell W(h)anganui.

In all it appers that Auguast was a good month with some very positive news. Economy improving through migration, laws to protect immigrants that appear to be working, and a boost for business in general.

Long may it continue!

 

 

July 2009

If I have to make a pick out of some articles this month than I would pick the following;

The unfortunate daeath of Michael Jackson. I still can remember him as a youngster at the age 8 to 10 years appearing on TV shows (it shows my age doesn't it). Everbody said then already he is going to be a big star. And yes that is exactly what happened! determination, focus nd aa will to achieve something great propelled him to become one of the best performers of all time, if not the best.

The IAA exempting non-lawyer employees. This in my view is shocking! What is the difference between an employee of a lawyer and an employee of a company of which the owner is an IAA licence holder? I have the following view; when you are ill you go to a GP or doctor, when you have a toothache you see a dentist, when you have issues with the law you see a lawyer and when you wish to have immigration advise you see an IAA licenced adviser. Why, you may ask? All the above mentioned people are specialist in their own field and are actively involved in dealing with the relevant issues on a day to day basis. However a lawyer (don't get me wrong, this is generally speaking) has a finger in various pies and not many lawyers are only specialised in immigration, they also undertake other activities.

Productivity needs to increase according to the government and for that they have appointed a special task master, Hon Dr Don Brash. It's a great initiative that needs to be applauded, however in this case I believe that the government may also need to set examples of increased productivity in their own departments.

July also saw the introduction by INZ of the new nd weall overdue Investor Policy. This appears to be an excellent policy and has made quite some waves in the industry. For further detaied information, please click on this link where the policy is described.

June 2009

This month has been an interesting month to say the least. It all started with negative press articles in the various news papers all over the country slamming the immigration services. The most damaging report came from the Auditor General comfirming the poor performance nd poor systems in place, and if that was not enough, this was confirmed in the same month with Immigration New Zealand intending to send pregnant women home.

This month was also marked with the IAA taking action against the intitators of the pasport scamm. Lets see how that develops!

From an economical point of view, we saw the house prices steadying as a result of migration (?) and, according to INZ statistical figures, a dramatic decrease in the brain drain.

In conclusion, it all comes down how to interpret figures and facts, isn't it?

May 2009

At the start of this month, 4 May 2009 to be exact, the Immigration Advisers Licencing Act came into effect. It is good to look back and see why this Act has been introduced and implemented.

The main reason of course is to protect immigrants and stamp out unscrupulous behavior towards migrants. I am sure the introduction of this Act will certainly assist, however it may also force some operators "underground" . I suggest that policing this would be a real challenge for the IAA.

The question could also be raised reference the logic to make the IAA part of the Department of Labour. In my view it may cause a "conflict of interest" or, in the worst scenario, impartiality of the IAA could be questioned, and that should be prevented at all costs. There is a simple solution to that and that would be that the IAA should be operating outside of the Department of Labour, totally independent.   

There are some more important issues to solve immediately, in the short term. One of them is how the people working in the immigration industry would be able to meet the standards of professional development.  These have not yet been set or promulgated while some advisers are already preparing for their relicencing.

Well, let me conclude in saying that I fully support the IAA and the new licencing regime. It will help to make the immigration industry more professional and will raise the level of the whole industry. It's now up to the IAA and other stakeholders to make it work. Wish now that INZ could join in and respond with also quality work and decisions.

April 2009

The last month before the Immigration Advisers Licencing Act 2007 comes into force. This Act requires that anyone who provides immigration advice in New Zealand must have a licence from the Immigration Advisers Authority, unless they are exempt from the requirement to hold a licence. From 4 May 2009, Immigration New Zealand will refuse to accept applications from unlicensed onshore advisers. From 4 May 2010, offshore advisers giving advice to people seeking visas or permits will also have to be licensed.

Is your Immigration Adviser licenced by the NZ Government? Click here for details www.iaa.govt.nz

Home affordability is improving. The fall in interest rates has made a big difference in terms of household cashflow for many borrowers. If you took out a $200,000 home loan on a floating rate now, you’d be paying $572.83 less in repayments each month than if you’d borrowed the same amount on a floating rate one year ago. Those on a floating rate at the moment may like to take advantage of this by keeping repayments at previous levels rather than reducing them along with the falls in interest rates (if they are able to). This will help them reduce the principal faster and pay off their home loan sooner.

More to follow .....

March 2009

We are looking forward to the Minister cutting the English language requirements (refer to newsarticle 17/03/09). This, I believe, would be very beneficial for New Zealand as "cash rich" people may now be more willing to come to New Zealand  through investment in businesses and governement held funds.

Yes, we do need skilled people but how many skilled people does a company require in comparison to the people doing the actual front line work? We need to grow New Zealand and an economy will only be self sustainable, i.e. not required to rob Peter to pay Paul, of at least 8 million people. For this to happen we require people who are willing and able to  invest funds into businesses and create employment.

You may ask what happens with the infra structure when we do have so many people coming into New Zealand. The answer is in my opinion quite clear; its a self regulating system as the new immigrants pay taxes and those taxes may be used to improve the infra structure and other services such as education and health.

Two months to go before the Immigration Licencing Act 2007 comes into force at the 4 May 2009. When you are interested in further developments, please see the website of the IAA which holds a register of the licenced advisers. next month some information about the implications of not being licenced.

February 2009

The recession starts to bite as is already evidenced in the value of the kiwi dollar (see article dated 03/02/09) and the house prices (see article on 14/01/09).

In addition the national bank published a report this month. The highlights (or should I say the low lights) are;

A net 41 percent of businesses expect worse times over the year ahead. This is down 6 percentage points from the final read of 2008. Sentiment within the retail sector remains uniformly pessimistic with a whopping 52 percent expecting worse times ahead for their own business over the coming year. A net 29 percent expect fewer staff over the coming year, a 7 percentage point jump (deterioration) from the end of 2008. With the exception of construction, employment intentions are uniformly worse across all sectors and either at or close to historical lows. Likewise, investment intentions hit a new low, with a net 15 percent expecting to reduce investment over the coming year. These are key supply - side inputs that tell us the downturn has moved beyond firms seeing lower sales, with businesses now having to respond themselves via less productive capacity. That means less investment and fewer jobs. Views towards the unemployment rate have reached a historical high, with 87 percent expecting it to increase. Pricing intentions remain low, supporting continued expectations of interest rate cuts. One-year ahead inflation expectations have eased from 3.2 percent to 2.7 percent, a level not seen since mid-2004.

As already mentioned in previous Bloggs, we as immigration Advisers are required to be licenced as from 4 May 2009. This appears to be happening much slower than expected and the news item dated 18/02/09 - Migrant advisers slow in licensing gives you a good impression of that. Does this mean that the authorities have made it too difficult for all the current consultants to meet the standards? The future will determine that however I believe that a certain level of professionalism is required as immigration advisers have a definite responsibility and impact on the lives and futures of their clients. Here is hoping that the Immigration Service now also improves it workflows, systems and procedures  and  thus improving efficiencies and less anxiety with the clients.

January 2009

Between now and tomorrow lies the future. Some hours, minutes or seconds can change our lives. We all look back sometimes. And why shouldn't we? The past has created us to who we are now. But more than all, looking forward is what makes life so beautiful.

Wishing you and all your loved ones a Happy, Safe and Prosperous New Year.

And what a start to the new year!!

• Great sunny weather more or less all over New Zealand with so now and then a little watering welcomed by all.
• A Government that appears to be alert to what is happening in New Zealand and other countries and acts upon their findings. Critics may disagree, to me however, it appears that the PM has everything well organised and covered.
• A new road connecting Auckland with the north of the country through a fantastic toll road cutting the travel time significantly. Why only one lane and not a double lane remains remains for me a question.
• With regards to Terra Nova Consultancy Ltd, December and January have been excellent. Long may it continue!

This month I would like to quote the former CEO of General Motors, Lee Iacocca; " The ability to concentrate and use your time well is everything if you want to succeed in business. If you want to make good use of your time you've got to know what is most important and then give it all you've got!"

December 2008

A short month with many people visitng my office to try to sort out their immigration issues and or status. In the majority of cases we were successful despite the upcoming festive season, meaning that case officers may not have been able to respond as normal to our queries. That is to be expected , that is normal and once explained the clients do accept that.

What else happened?

• The Reserve Bank delivered on the widespread anticipation of a major cut in the Official Cash Rate (OCR) by reducing it one and a half percentage points, from 6.5% to 5%.
• Although the size of the cut was unprecedented, it was in line with our Economists’ expectations. The Reserve Bank said key factors in the decision were the ongoing turmoil in financial markets, the marked deterioration in the global growth outlook, and the negative flow-on effects of this on the New Zealand economy.
• Since July, the OCR has fallen by 3.25%. The Reserve Bank expects this lowering of interest rates, along with a depreciating New Zealand dollar and fiscal stimulus from the government, to help support the economy and create the conditions for a rebound in growth.
• The Reserve Bank said they still had concerns over domestic inflation, citing electricity prices and local body rates in particular. However, they expected that weaker growth and falling petrol prices will help inflation return comfortably to within their target range of 1% – 3%.

What does it mean?

• The Reserve Bank said further reductions in the OCR would depend on what happens in the global and domestic economies.
• However, our Economists expect further reductions, with the OCR ultimately likely to fall below 4%.
• Future cuts are unlikely to be on the same scale as todays. The most likely scenario is a series of 0.5% cuts, though a larger move still cannot be ruled out.
• The Reserve Bank said they expected financial institutions to pass on the reductions in wholesale interest rates to their customers.

How does the OCR affect home loan interest rates?

The OCR is set every six weeks by the Governor of the Reserve Bank. The Governor sets this rate to manage inflation, based on what’s happening in the economy. The OCR is one of many indicators, including overseas interest rates and wider economic developments, that affect short term interest rates such as floating rates and one and two year fixed lending rates.

Wishing you all a Merry and Blessed Christmas and a Safe, Happy and Prosperous New Year. See you in 2009!!!

Contribution from the National Bank of New Zealand

November 2008

The below informstion was published in November as it relates to the past month's perfromance and business outlook.

Business confidence plunged in October. A net 42 percent of respondents now expect general business conditions to deteriorate over the coming year. That’s a massive 44 point turnaround from September and is the largest one month fall in the history of the survey. Every sector is now dismal about the future, and every sector contributed: retailing down 50 points, construction 33, manufacturing 31, agriculture 30, and services down an eye-popping 55 points.

The picture is just as grim across the remainder of the survey. Firms’ own activity expectations fell from plus 17 to minus 11. This is the second lowest on record (the all time low is minus 19 in April 1988) and the largest intra-month decline. Employment intentions dropped to a historical low. A net 21 percent of respondents expected fewer staff, down 15 points, and hit a historical nadir. The negative streak has extended to nine months. Investment intentions are now minus 13, and profit expectations fell to a net minus 32 percent. Export intentions went from plus 29 to plus 11.

Fewer respondents expect lower interest rates, with a net 49 percent expecting lower interest rates in the year ahead – down from a net 63 percent last month. This is not necessarily a sign that they see less chance of a reduction in the official cash rate – set by the Reserve Bank – but they are wary as to the offsetting influence the global scene may have on rates.

Contribution from the National Bank of New Zealand