24/11/16 - NZ regional hotspots where population will boom

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Infometrics report puts Hobsonville in first position

New Zealand's top hotspots 2013-23 


• Hobsonville 254 per cent (12,390 people)

• South west Christchurch 105 per cent (122,790 people)

• Central Christchurch 83 per cent (4270 people)

• Papamoa 74 per cent (5190 people)

View image here.

Population growth hotspots have been identified throughout New Zealand in a new report that shows Hobsonville in Auckland is about to "take off" with 254 per cent growth in just a decade.

Infometrics has this morning released its Regional Hotspots 2016 report, showing the country's top future population growth areas between 2013 and 2023, revealing some obvious and less obvious areas.

Hobsonville's population will accelerate 254 per cent as new housing supply expands, with next year's Waterview Connection opening, the Northwestern Motorway upgrade and the 2011 completion of the Upper Harbour Highway, Infometrics said. About 8000 dwellings are planned in that area to Auckland's north-west, of which about 7400 are in the Hobsonville Point development.

New Zealand's second-fastest growing region will be south-west Christchurch, up 105 per cent in the decade; followed by central Christchurch (83 per cent) and Papamoa, up 74 per cent.

Earthquakes had amplified the rate of development around Christchurch's city fringe urban areas, Infometrics said, noting a drift to the west and south, particularly Rolleston, West Melton, Wigram, Prebbleton, Lincoln and Halswell.

Three other top Auckland hotspots were identified: Beachlands-Drury, Orewa and Central Auckland.

Statistics NZ released data this week showing New Zealand's annual net gain of migrants hit another record high in October, rising to 70,300, surpassing the previous peak of 70,000 set in September. Annual migrant arrivals were 126,100, a new record, beating the record 125,600 set in the September year. Annual migrant departures were 55,800, from 55,700 in September, it said.

Infometrics said New Zealand population growth was at its highest level since the mid-1970s.

"Almost all of New Zealand has had a bit of a 'hotspot' feeling to it this year. The spread of the housing market's boom from Auckland through the halo regions and then across much of the rest of the country has clearly demonstrated one of the consequences of strong population growth, particularly if the supply of new housing is unable to respond quickly enough to the lift in demand," the Infometrics report said.

Population growth has a big effect on business.

"The fact that there are potentially more customers coming in the door for businesses in a town such as Waiuku gives those firms a distinct advantage over companies trying to operate in an area with static or shrinking population," Infometrics said.

The hotspots were concentrated around the country's main metropolitan centres, "reflecting the highly urbanised nature of New Zealand's population and the greater density of potential new markets offered by these growth areas".

Limiting Auckland to just four hotspots seemed a little unfair "when the entire region is creaking under the weight of rapid population growth" but those four were standouts, Infometrics said.

(Source: NZ Herald)

23/11/16 - New Zealanders among world's richest

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New Zealanders have leapfrogged Brits, Singaporians and Belgians to become the fifth wealthiest people in the world, according to a major new study.

The Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report 2016 provides a comprehensive overview of the world's wealth, covering all regions across the wealth spectrum.

It found that global wealth growth was weak in the past 12 months, rising 1.4 per cent to US$256 trillion. This just kept pace with population growth meaning wealth was unchanged for the first time since 2008, at about US$52,800 ($74,700) per adult.

New Zealand was one of the few countries to see significant jumps in the wealth of its citizens, who gained close to 15 per cent on average this year. This came from capital market appreciation combined with exchange rate improvement.

According to the report, Switzerland has the world's wealthiest citizens (US$562,000 per adult), followed by Australia (US$376,000), the United States (US$345,000) and Norway (US$312,000).

It was calculated that the average New Zealand adult owns US$299,000 ($422,700), up US$34,000 on last year. This means it jumps the United Kingdom, Singapore and Belgium in the rankings.

When revised for median wealth per adult, New Zealand was placed fourth after Switzerland, Australia, and Belgium.

"In contrast, the United States falls dramatically from third place according to mean wealth to 23rd place according to median wealth," the report said.

The report found that to be in the wealthiest 10 per cent, a person needs US$71,600. Half of the world's adults own less than US$2,222, while those in the bottom 20 per cent own less than US$248. Economic inequality has increased this year, with the top percentile estimated to own 50.8 per cent of global household assets.

Earlier this month, New Zealand was placed at the top of the Legatum Prosperity Index because of its "unrivalled ability to turn its wealth into prosperity" - a broader measure than just money.

The world's wealthiest citizens

1. Switzerland (US$562,000 per adult)
2. Australia (US$376,000)
3. The United States (US$345,000)
4. Norway (US$312,000)
5. New Zealand US$299,000

(Source: NZ Herald)

04/11/16 - New Zealand best place to live in the world - study

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New Zealand didn't crack the Prosperity Index's top 10 for natural environment, but excelled in most other areas (Flickr / giiku)

We know we've got the best rugby team, sheep shearers and moustached basketballer in the world, but now New Zealand has excelled in another area - prosperity.

At least that's according to a survey conducted by London-based think-tank the Legatum Institute, who considered 104 factors before coming to the conclusion that New Zealand should be crowned the top country on its Prosperity Index.

The Index calculates just how much prosperity a country delivers given its wealth - looking at its per capita GDP and the number of people employed, among a myriad of other variables.

The Index said New Zealand was unrivalled in its ability to turn its wealth into prosperity, describing Aotearoa as model country for delivering "wellbeing and wealth".

We took top spot on account of our social capital - which measures personal relationship and social network support - and economic quality - which looks at macroeconomic indicators, financial foundations for growth and the economy's openness.

We were also deemed to have the world's second best business environment and governance, and were third best in personal freedom.

Our success has been put down to a few factors - with our place in the Commonwealth, our strong civil society and wide open markets all significant, the Legatum Institute says.

Sitting one place behind New Zealand in second overall is Norway, which relinquished its crown for the first time in eight years, with Finland in third on account of it having the world's top-rated government.

Switzerland was fourth thanks to its unparalleled education system, while Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and the UK rounded out the top 10.

The United States failed to feature in the top 25, with no South American or African nations featuring either. The most prosperous Asian nation is Singapore, which sits 19th on the Index.

Please click here for the full report.

(Source: Newshub)

25/10/16 - Migration restrictions to hurt economy - experts

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Restrictions on migrant residency will hurt the nation's growing economy by keeping out skilled workers employers need, immigration experts say.

Government restrictions were made with good intentions but with a lack of understanding about the impact on business, New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment chairwoman June Ranson says.

Among the changes announced by Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse earlier this month were an increase in the skilled migrant points threshold from 140 to 160, which Business NZ welcomed for its potential to sharpen the annual intake toward higher skilled workers.

But Ms Ranson fears employers will struggle to find tradespeople because the new laws fail to recognise people without university degrees can still be highly skilled based on work or business experience.

"These changes are a political knee-jerk reaction, with little thought given to the growth of New Zealand and the needs of business," she said, calling for an urgent review and discussions with business and migration experts.

Last week Tourism Industry Aotearoa said raising the points threshold from 140 to 160 was worsening the skills shortage, revealing 90 percent of chefs approved for work visas last year would miss out under the new rules.

"Where are these essential workers supposed to come from? There simply isn't an adequate supply in many parts of the country," chief executive Chris Roberts said.

(Source: Newshub)

25/10/16 - Govt's migration changes will hurt NZ's economy - experts

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A warning the New Zealand economy's about to take a hit from a workforce skills shortage that's getting worse.

The New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment says the government's latest residency rules are restricting the wrong people from staying in New Zealand.

Chairwoman June Ranson said the restrictions focus too heavily on academic qualifications rather than experience and practical knowledge.

She said skilled migrants have begun to hand in their notices amidst a large skills gap in the New Zealand workforce in areas from IT to truck driving.

"They've come in on work visas with the knowledge that they would be able to go to residence and they're now saying that there's no point in staying and of course employers are very, very nervous."

Ms Ranson said the government's policies were well-intended, but they weren't fully thought through and are now leaving businesses red-faced.

"They're also placing employers in embarassing situations where they have brought in very qualified people to run New Zealand global companies and they're in a difficult situation because they don't have qualifications - they have 25 years experience which is what we need."

She said hands on experience is absolutely paramount and she agrees with the Salvation Army's report that asks for more New Zealand youth to be upskilled alongside relaxing laws to increase migrant intakes.

"It's all been brought on by a lack of planning, the whole thing's been brought on by a lack of planning, there should have been these schemes in force beforehand."

Ms Ranson said she recognises the government's looking at reviewing it but it is likely to take months and the damage has already been done.

"Just look at the tourism industry, per population for 2018-2020 we're going to have more tourists in this country than we have population - that's serious and where's the infrastructure to support it."

(Source: Newstalk ZB, Alicia Burrow)

19/10/16 - Sallies say Kiwi youth falling behind migrants

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A Salvation Army report calling on the Government to put the needs of young Kiwi workers ahead of migrant labour has sparked a testy debate in Parliament.

Labour Leader Andrew Little's locked horns with the Prime Minister on the issue this afternoon.

"What's more important to him? Providing cheap imported labour or providing a better future for young New Zealanders."

But John Key's accusing his opponent of having a double standard on the matter, citing Mr Little's comments at a Diwali event on the weekend where he supported Indian students.

"Trying to make out he's the friend of the migrant. When he's not bagging them for having a Chinese name, he's out there telling them Indian chefs aren't welcome in this country."

The Salvation Army is calling on industries such as the dairy and hospitality sector to employ New Zealand youth - as much as it does migrants.

It's report 'What's Next' has found New Zealand will be short 300,000 workers over the next 10 years and youth unemployment remains a key issue.

It also found a migration boom - on average 30 per cent more people are coming to New Zealand than three or four years ago.

Social policy analyst Alan Johnson said it's evident a conscious effort has been made to attract more migrant workers to fill the workforce gap.

But he said the Government's responded to calls for relaxed migration from industries such as the dairy and hospitality sector - over the needs of Kiwi youth to be upskilled.

He said there seem to be sector's that have received a lot of migrant labour - some of it labour that could have easily been taught to Kiwi youth in six months.

There are suggestions inequalities in our education system need to be addressed to fix the skill shortage in New Zealand's workforce.

The report found 75,000 people under 25 are unemployed mainly due to having limited - or no - marketable skills. It states it’s unacceptable that those figures have barely budged since the Global Financial crisis.

“Just prior to the GFC, the Labour force participation rate for 15 to 19 year olds was just under 56 per cent, but by mid 2013 the rate fell to less than 42 per cent and had only recovered to 46 per cent by mid 2016.”

It goes on to say if current job figures were applied against this higher participation rate of 56 percent, the youth unemployment rate would be over 30 percent, instead of the official rate of 20 per cent.

Mr Johnson said students leaving a decile eight, nine or 10 school are three and a half times more likely to have University Entrance.

He said it's not okay to accept such a large group have been marginalised and efforts need to be doubled, expectations set - to better the situation for youth, and the communities they live in.

Mr Johnson said it also found 900 people reach the age of 65 every week in New Zealand.

While it's a trend we've known about it's only just starting to bite and it's likely to continue for the next 15 years, said Mr Johnson.

The Salvation Army said while it's easy for students to move from school to university, there's a fragile disconnect between schools and a trade qualification.

Mr Johnson said it's in part because of an excessive focus on academic achievement, and an assumption that everyone should go to university.

He said whilst we shouldn't try and force people into trades because they aren't going to cut it at uni the reality is we are short of people with technical and practical skills.

Mr Johnson said only 35 to 40 per cent of people gaining apprenticeships are under 20.

However, Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce said the report was misleading. 

"Currently the percentage of 15-19 year olds not in employment, education and training (NEET) is almost the lowest level since records began in 2004.

"The report misleads in its use of youth unemployment rates as these only look at the relatively small percentage of youth that are in the workforce, which is why successive governments use the NEET measure.

"The suggestion that young Kiwis are being crowded out of the labour market is incorrect. In fact the economic settings of this government which include the migration settings, have helped create 323,000 additional jobs (or 15 per cent additional jobs across the workforce) since the peak of the global financial crisis in 2009."

(Source: Newstalk ZB)

19/10/16 - New Zealand's elderly population to triple

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The New Zealand population is expected to get a whole lot older in the next few decades, according to the latest Statistics New Zealand report.

The number of people aged 85 years and older will more than triple, from about 83,000 in 2016 to between 270,000 and 320,000 in the next 30 years, the report says.

It also predicts the population of over-65s will roughly double - from around 700,000 now to between 1.3 and 1.5 million in 2046.

As the population ages and the gap between births and deaths narrows, overall population growth is expected to slow to less than 1 percent in the 2030s.
5 million by 2020

New Zealand's population is likely to hit five million around 2020, but could reach the milestone even sooner, the report says.

In the year ended June 2016 the population grew at its fastest rate since the early 1960s, jumping 2.1 percent, or 97,000 people.

"Our population was estimated to be 4.69 million at 30 June 2016, with net migration being 69,100 over the June year," Stats NZ senior demographer Kim Dunstan said.

The latest forecasts show a high chance of the population rising to between 4.9 and 5.1 million by 2020, and reaching between 5.3 and 7.9 million by 2068.

Baby boomers not to blame for aging population

The figures show New Zealand's median age has risen from 25.6 years in 1970 to 37.1 years old in 2016.

By 2068, Stats NZ predicts half the population could be older than 46 years old.

The rise in median age is heightened by the large number of people born between 1950 and the early 1970s moving into the older ages, but the report says baby boomers are not to blame.

It's caused by society's change towards lower birth rates and lower death rates.

The projections indicate that once baby boomers have passed on, the New Zealand population won't revert to a younger age structure unless there's a major rise in fertility rates.

(Source Newshub)

18/10/16 - Migrant numbers likely to rise despite tougher rules

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The number of people cleared to settle in New Zealand is still likely to increase over the next year, despite tougher new requirements for getting residence under the Skilled Migrant Category.

Last week the government announced it was cutting its planning range for new residents by 5000 over two years, including cuts to numbers in the Family Category and a new requirement for those in the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) to get 160 points for residence, up from 140.

Cabinet papers have revealed just over 52,000 people were granted residence last year - with the Skilled Migrant Category making up about 60 percent of those numbers - while 54,000 have been forecast for this year.

In the documents, officials noted it would take some time for the policy changes to kick in, so numbers were likely to be unaffected for some time.

"Even with the increased selection mark, it is expected more SMC migrants would be approved in 2016/2017 than in 2015/2016."

Hospitality, tourism and retail

The three occupations most likely to be affected by the points increase were chefs, retail managers and restaurant managers, according to the papers.

Tourism Industry Aotearoa said those changes would make it harder for hotels, restaurants and cafes around New Zealand to maintain a quality customer experience.

Chief executive Chris Roberts said raising the points threshold for the Skilled Migrant Category would making existing skills shortages worse.

"It is disappointing the government went ahead with this change, despite advice from officials that two of the most affected occupations would be chef and café or restaurant manager.

"We agree that New Zealanders should be first in line for jobs in the hospitality and tourism sectors, but there simply isn't an adequate supply in many parts of the country," said Mr Roberts.

Other occupations that tended to result in scores less than 160 points, and so could miss out on residency, included ICT workers, carpenters and aged care nurses.

Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse was advised by officials that while the broader changes would send a message the government was "managing immigration numbers", there was a risk an ongoing reduction in SMC numbers could put pressure on other categories.

"For example, temporary visas or Partnership Category, as temporary migrants will be likely to look for alternative pathways," the advice said.

(Source Jane Patterson RNZ Political Editor)

16/10/16 - Woodhouse admits immigration cuts based on four-year-old numbers

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The government's decision to cut New Zealand's intake of migrants' family members from 5500 to 2000 a year was based on four-year-old information, Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse admits.

Its rationale for the cutback is that migrants' relatives are costing the country millions of dollars a year in healthcare and benefits.

However, there are no recent figures to back this up.

Mr Woodhouse also conceded the cuts would have no impact on Auckland house prices, saying they "are not designed to".

"When the parent category was last reviewed, what we did see was that the healthcare costs by them were about three times higher than in, for example, the skilled migrants," he said.

"We also saw that there were very high levels of income support both two years, and five years after they came here."

Mr Woodhouse says an impending review will determine the exact costs parents of migrants are placing on taxpayers.

"This is a very normal review that we do from time to time. No one’s taking a swipe at anybody. There are limits to the way in which we can control the residents, particularly because of our humanitarian obligations, and those family and partnerships," he said.

Greens co-leader James Shaw told The Nation that the government is " barking up the wrong tree" by putting the pressure on the family category.

"There’s huge numbers of students that are coming into New Zealand on temporary work visas and that’s actually where a lot of the pressure is coming from, especially on housing and on transport infrastructure," he said.

On TVNZ's Q+A, NZ First leader NZ First leader Winston Peters said the govenment was only "tinkering around the edges" of immigration policy.

RAW DATA: Patrick Gower interviews Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse on The Nation

Patrick Gower: Michael Woodhouse, thanks for joining us this morning. I want to start by asking you a few practical questions, Minister, about how this will work. Will it make a difference, for instance, to traffic on the Auckland motorway?

Michael Woodhouse: Well, probably not, because the overwhelming majority of people gaining residence are already here.

So will this change, make a difference to house prices in any way?

Well, it’s not designed to. We’ve reviewed the residence programme—

Okay, well, what about schools? What about schools and hospitals and the pressure that we know are on those? Will this make a difference to that? Will this make a difference to the waiting lists? Will it make a difference to those people that don’t have classrooms, the schools that don’t have classrooms?

Well, look, the classrooms are being built, the hospitals are being redeveloped, the demand is being met, but what we have—

Will this immigration cut help it or not? Yes or no, really?

Well, it’s not designed to. It’s designed to help the government—

What is it designed to do, because—?

I’ll answer that question.

What is it designed to do? Because those are the kinds of things that are concerning people about immigration, and it’s not going to help any of them?

Well, what it’s designed to do is help the Government plan for the sorts of range of demand for residents that we have. We’ve done this for about 15 years, and it’s just a normal review. We have three broad categories of residence, that’s our humanitarian obligations, our family and partnerships—

I understand that. I understand that it’s fitting with everything. So does everyone watching, but it’s not going to actually—

I’m not sure that they do, Paddy. It’s really important.

It’s not going to make a difference to what they’re worried about.

This is a very important—

Is it?

This is a very important way to explain why we do what we do. Because we live in a globalised world, a lot of the people that we have here weren’t born here. A lot of their partners and spouses and children are also coming from overseas, particularly given that we travel the world and we often find our life partners somewhere else. We have our Pacific and humanitarian obligations. So we’ve always had, broadly, this number of people coming in. What we saw last year was a spike, and the projections are that will continue if the settings aren’t tweaked. That’s what we did this week.

Let’s look at one of the concrete changes you’ve made, which is around parents and family reunification. You’ve said that these people are costing the taxpayer millions of dollars. Can you tell us exactly how many millions and how they’re costing that? Because we know that they don’t take benefits.

That’ll be the subject of a review, which we’ve done periodically.

So do you—?

When it was last looked at—

Do you know? Do you have a figure?

Broadly, the last time we looked at that, we did see that there were high levels of health care costs.

When was that?

Oh, three or four years ago. It was the reason why we closed one of the parent categories, and it was also the reason—

Okay, well, let’s just stop. So you’ve got no figures right now on how much these people are costing New Zealand? You’re saying they’re costing millions, but you’ve got figures that are three to four years old.

That’ll be the subject of the review that we’re going to do over the next few months. What we did this week was take steps to make sure that the long-term average of residents visas granted was maintained. There are two broad areas where we can do that. One is in the capped family category, which includes parents, and the other is in the skilled migrant category. So we did both.

On those parents, when you said this week that they cost the taxpayer millions, you don’t have any actual evidence of that, do you? Any current evidence right now?

Well, look, those reviews have been done in the past.

Three or four years ago. I’m talking about right now, 2016, do you have a cost to the taxpayer of the parents, yes or no?

We will certainly be analysing that as we understand what we’re going to do in terms of policy changes. These are policy changes.

Because, with respect, shouldn’t you have analysed that before you cut them off?

We haven’t cut them off. We’ve taken a temporary pause—

You’ve blocked them. You’ve paused them or whatever.

Look, Paddy—

Shouldn’t you have done the research before that?

I’ll just explain that, because I think it’s important. There are other ways parents can come in. We have a parent and grandparent long-term visitor visa,
we have a resident visa which for people of means can come and stay, and there are other ways that parents can come and go.

But it just looks to me like a cheap shot here. You’re blaming these grandparents. You’ve done no research. You’ve got no numbers. It’s Winston Peters kind of stuff.

We do have the numbers, and I want to explain that to you.

This is Winston Peters kind of stuff.

When the parent category was last reviewed, what we did see was that the health care costs by them were about three times higher than in, for example, the skilled migrants. We also saw that there were very high levels of income support, both two years and five years after they came here. I can’t remember the exact numbers in millions of cost of income support, but we will be updating and analysing that as part of the review.

But are these people really the problem, the grandparents? Are they really the problem when we’ve had sort of 94,000 non-New Zealanders as migrants last year? Are these parents, a few thousand parents, really the issue?

Well, I’m not sure where the 94,000’s come from.

Statistics New Zealand.

Well, Statistics New Zealand produce an awful lot of data. The most common referred to is the permanent and long-term net migration data, which, of course, also includes New Zealanders, and then—

We’ve taken New Zealanders out of this figure.

That could well be right.

Well, I want to pick up on one thing there, and that’s something that I’ve asked the Prime Minister about and others as well. 5900 work visas for tour guides — I’ve asked the Prime Minister about this. Why have we granted so many visas for tour guides?

Look, I think it’s easily explainable. Our tourism industry is going aggressively at the moment. We are seeing hundreds of thousands more people from countries that don’t speak English who are wanting to visit our country and spend billions of dollars here. It’s our number one export earner right now. So it’s not surprising that we need a few people to help in terms of the way in which those people are facilitated, particularly when they go on guided tours.

And is it the same with chefs? Is it the same with chefs as well? You know, you think we’re bringing in the right number of chefs here — a couple of thousand?

Well, look, again, when there is very strong growth in tourism and hospitality, obviously those people are going to need to be fed while they’re here, so it’s all a symbiotic process. And so the numbers are going up over a number of categories, and, again, that shouldn’t surprise anyone.

So you don’t think there needs to be a cut in the work or the student visa areas as well to match what you’ve already done?

Well, as I said, the essential skills work visas which comprise the labour market test, either by having a skill shortage — an occupation on the skills shortage list — or by the employer physically going and checking whether there’s a Kiwi available to do the job, the numbers of those visas have gone down in our time in office.

Because what some of this looks like is if you’re not adjusting with the student visas, you’re not adjusting with the work visas, you’ve taken this gigantic swipe at the grandparents that you’ve got no research on. It looks as if you’re reacting to polls. It looks as if you’re reacting to public pressure. It looks as if you’re reacting to political pressure.

Well, look, that’s just nonsense. This is a very normal review that we do from time to time. No one’s taking a swipe at anybody. There are limits to the way in which we can control the residents, particularly because of our humanitarian obligations, and those family and partnerships.

And just on the student visa issue, if we look at this sort of wave that’s coming in in terms of applying for permanent residency, some of that is obviously to blame with the high number of student visas that have come in, isn’t it? Students who are wanting to stay on who are applying for permanent residency. Is that what some of this is designed to catch?

I think some of the pressure has come from that area, but we have an international education programme that is designed to deliver good education, not residency.

But as you say there, some of the pressure has come from that, hasn’t it, students finishing their time and wanting to stay on and wanting to get on that pathway to permanent residency?

Yeah, and for those who have the skills that are in short supply in New Zealand and qualify under the skilled migrant programme, that’s always been the case. I think the long-run average is fewer than 20% of the people who study here actually get to stay, for a variety of reasons, not just the skilled migration category. Some of them actually find their life partners here.

But will some of them find it harder now that they’ve got to pass the English test, that they’ve got to get the extra 20 points?

Well, firstly—

Do you think some students will find it a bit harder to stay on?

The standard for English hasn’t changed. It’s just the method of establishing that. But the increase in the points for skilled migrant resident visas could result in fewer graduates qualifying. But as I say, the goal of international education is to get a good education.

So basically students will find it a bit harder to stay on, won’t they?

That’s possible, yeah.

Is that sort of ripping them off? Because we know they do come for education, but they also come for that pathway to residence as well. Do you feel that some of them might be thinking that they’ve been misled by this, by this government?

Well, if they have—

It’s changing the goalpost, to use a very New Zealand term.

If they have an expectation of residence at the end of their study, that’s not an expectation that the government has set, so I don’t accept that we have participated in that misunderstanding.



(Source NBR)

12/10/16 - Skilled Migrant Category questions and answers

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New Zealand Residence Programme questions and answers for the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC).

What is the Skilled Migrant Category and how does it work?

The Skilled Migrant Category is a points-based residence policy, for people who wish to live permanently in New Zealand. A person who wishes to apply for residence under the Skilled Migrant Category must first put in an Expression of Interest (EOI) to Immigration New Zealand, claiming points for factors like their qualifications, work experience and job offer. Immigration New Zealand does a fortnightly draw selecting EOIs based on the points claimed, then invites people with sufficient points to apply.

All applicants must meet some minimum criteria, regarding health, character and English language.

What is changing, when?

Two changes to the Skilled Migrant Category have been announced

• the points threshold for automatic selection has been increased from 140 to 160 from 12 October 2016 (regardless of whether an applicant has a job offer)
• the way applicants show evidence that they meet the minimum standard of English language is changing

What is happening with the Skilled Migrant Category points threshold and why?
What was the situation before?

Previously, all EOIs were selected where the person had claimed:

• 140 points or more
• 100-139 points, where they claimed points for a New Zealand job offer

What are the changes?

From 12 October 2016 only EOIs with 160 points or more will be selected. This will enable the number of Skilled Migrant Category resident visas granted in 2016/17 to remain within the target range.

Why does this have to change?

New Zealand is currently a popular destination, and therefore there is a very high demand for places under the Skilled Migrant Category. To ensure that this demand is managed effectively, the Government has set the total planning range for the Skilled/Business stream of the NZRP across the 2016/17 and 2017/18 years at 50,500–57,500. If INZ was to continue to select EOIs using the same thresholds as previously, more visas would be granted than the target range allows.

Is the new points threshold of 160 permanent?

No. The automatic selection mark for EOIs may be adjusted as necessary to manage the achievement of the overall New Zealand Residence Programme.

What is happening with evidence of English language and why?
What was the situation before?

The minimum English language requirement for applicants under the Skilled Migrant Category is an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) overall score of 6.5 across the four language domains (reading, writing, listening and speaking).

Prior to the 12 October change, immigration officers could also consider a variety of alternative pieces of evidence of English language ability in place of an IELTS score, including:

• a recognised qualification where the medium of instruction was English
• one year of skilled employment in New Zealand
• other evidence that the applicant is a competent user of English (for example the country in which the applicant resides, the nature of their
• current or previous employment, whether members of the applicant’s family speak English).
• In any case, an immigration officer could still require the applicant to provide an IELTS test.

What are the changes about who has to do a test?

People who are invited to apply from 12 October onwards will not be able to use the same alternative evidence of English language in place of a test as previously. The evidence that can be accepted in place of a test will be limited to:

• citizenship of Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States of America provided the applicant has spent at least five years in work or education in one or more of those countries or Australia or New Zealand; or
• a recognised qualification comparable to a New Zealand level 7 bachelor’s degree and gained in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States of America as a result of study undertaken for at least two academic years in one or more of those countries; or
• a recognised qualification comparable to a New Zealand qualification at level 8 or above and gained in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States of America as a result of study undertaken for at least one academic year in one or more of those countries.

People invited to apply before 12 October will not be affected and may still use the alternatives previously in place. They only need to provide what Immigration New Zealand has already requested on the invitation to apply.

What are the changes about what kind of tests Immigration New Zealand will accept?

From 21 November 2016, Immigration New Zealand will accept a wider range of English language tests.

The new tests that INZ will accept are:

• Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet Based Test (TOEFL iBT)
• Occupational English Test (OET)
• Cambridge English: First (FCE) and FCE for Schools
• Pearson Test of English: Academic (PTE: Academic)

Why do the requirements have to change?

The new requirements add clarity to the assessment process. Particularly, the new requirements will:

• Give applicants more clarity at the start of the process about whether an English language test will be needed.
• Ensure greater consistency in the level of English language of those people approved residence under the Skilled Migrant Category, thereby ensuring all new migrants can settle and fully enjoy their new life in New Zealand as residents.
• Expand the acceptable English language tests, allowing many more applicants to have their English language assessed more easily. There are a number of English language testing providers other than IELTS, some of which are more commonly used in some parts of the world.

Do the new English language evidence requirements apply to partners and dependent children?

If you have already been invited to apply, the new English language evidence requirements do not apply to you or your partner or children.

If you are invited to apply after 12 October, the new English language evidence requirements will apply to your partner and any dependent children over the age of 16. If you have claimed points for your partner’s qualifications or work experience, those points will not be awarded unless your partner meets the new evidence requirements.

If your partner or dependent children do not meet the minimum standard, you will be required to pre-purchase English tuition. The amount of tuition fees you will be required to pay depends on their test results.

What should I do if I was planning to put an expression of interest in under the Skilled Migrant Category but I can’t meet the new points threshold?

If you cannot meet the new points threshold, we would not recommend that you submit an EOI as it is unlikely to be selected. You may wish to look at our other options for residency to find a category that is more suitable for your situation. To find out about other categories for applying for residence in New Zealand, explore residence options on our website.

If you are already working in New Zealand, or you have an offer of work in New Zealand, you can apply for a temporary work visa based on your job. Your employer may need to show they cannot find any New Zealanders to take up the work. To find out about work visa categories, explore work visa options on our website.

I put in an expression of interest in which I claimed enough points to be selected under the old threshold, but from 12 October only people with 160 points will be selected. What can I do?

If you think you might be able to claim more points and you submitted your expression of interest online, you can log back into your expression of interest and make changes. If you claim more than 160 points you could be selected as part of the next draw. Remember you will have to show evidence for all the points you have claimed if you are invited to apply.

What if I have already been selected, but I haven’t been sent an invitation to apply yet?

If you have already been selected your application will be assessed on the basis of the points threshold for selection on the date that your EOI was selected from the Pool. However, if you have not been invited to apply on or before 11 October, you will need to meet the new requirements for evidence of English language.

What if I’ve already been invited to apply?

If you’ve already received a letter inviting you to apply and setting out the documents you need to provide, you just need to follow the instructions on the letter. The new points threshold and new requirements for English language evidence do not apply to you regardless of the date of your application. You must make your application within the timeframe specified in your invitation letter.

What if I’ve already applied under the Skilled Migrant Category?

If you’ve already applied, the requirements that were in place on the date you made your application will continue to apply to you. You don’t need to meet the new point threshold and the new requirements for English language evidence do not apply to you.

I think I can meet the new points threshold, but I was planning to use my one year of skilled employment in New Zealand as evidence of meeting the English language requirement, so what do the changes to English language mean for me?

If you are invited to apply, you will need to provide an English test if you do not meet any of the other new requirements. If you apply after 21 November, you can use one of the new tests. Your invitation to apply requires you to apply within four months, so you should make sure you organise your test soon after being invited.

What scores will be required on the new English language tests? Where can I find out more information about the tests?

More information scores required for each test are listed below, along with the websites of each testing providers. Remember that if you lodge your application before 21 November 2016 IELTS is the only test INZ can accept.

• International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
  www.ielts.org
  6.5 score
• Occupational English Test (OET)
  www.occupationalenglishtest.org
  B score
• Cambridge English: First (FCE) and FCE for Schools
  www.cambridgeenglish.org/exams/first/
  176 score
• Pearson Test of English: Academic (PTE: Academic)
  www.pearsonpte.com
  58 score
• Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet Based Test (TOEFL iBT)
  www.ets.org/toefl/ibt/about
  79 score

How long are the English tests valid for?

English language tests are valid for two years from the date they were sat.

(Source: INZ)