Epsilon Law

02/10/2021

Scarce list — Primary sector roles
Roles in the Primary sector.

Agricultural and horticultural mobile plant operator
Agricultural consultant
Agricultural engineer
Agricultural scientist
Agricultural technician
Anaesthetic technician
Animal attendants and trainers nec
Apiarist
Aquaculture farmer
Aquaculture worker
Arborist
Baker
Baking factory worker
Beef cattle farm worker
Beef cattle farmer
Boat builder and repairer
Brewery worker
Butcher or smallgoods maker
Cabinetmakers
Cardiac technician
Chef
Chemist
Confectionery maker
Conservation Officer
Cook
Cotton Grower
Crop farm workers nec
Crop Farmers nec
Dairy cattle farm worker
Dairy Farm Manager
Dairy products maker
Deck hand
Deer farmer
Dog handler or trainer
Environmental consultant
Environmental engineer
Environmental manager
Environmental research scientist
Environmental scientists nec
Fabric and textile factory worker
Farm, forestry and garden workers
Farrier
Fencer
Fisheries officer
Fishing hand
Florist
Food and drink factory workers nec
Food technologist
Food trades assistants nec
Footwear production machine operator
Forester (AUS) / Forest scientist (NZ)
Forestry worker
Fruit and vegetable factory worker
Fruit and vegetable packer
Fruit or nut farm worker
Fruit or Nut Grower
Fruit or nut picker
Furniture finisher
Gardener (general)
Goat farmer
Grain mill worker
Grain, oilseed or pasture farm worker (AUS) / Field crop farm worker (NZ)
Grain, Oilseed or Pasture Grower / Field Crop Grower
Grape Grower
Greenskeeper
Hide and skin processing machines operators
Hide and skin processing worker
Horse breeder
Horse groomer
Horticultural nursery assistant
Hunter-trapper
Kennel hand
Knitting machine operator
Landscape gardener
Livestock farm workers nec
Livestock farmers
Logging assistant
Logging plant operator
Marine biologist
Marine transport professionals nec
Master fisher
Meat b***r and slicer
Meat inspector
Meat packer
Meat process worker
Medical laboratory technician
Medical technician nec
Mixed crop and livestock farm worker
Mixed crop and livestock farmer
Mixed Crop Farmer
Mixed livestock farm worker
Mixed livestock farmer
Mushroom picker
Nurseypersons
Operating theatre technician
Other wood processing machine operator nec
Paper and pulp mill operator
Paper products machine operator
Park ranger
Pastrycook
Pastrycook's assistant
Pathology collector / phlebotomist
Pest controller
Pet groomer
Pharmacy technician
Picture framer
Pig farmer
Poultry farm worker
Poultry farmer
Poultry process worker
Primary products inspectors nec
Production manager (forestry)
Quarantine officer
Saw maker and repairer
Sawmill or timber yard worker
Sawmilling operator
Seafood packer
Seafood process worker
Shearer
Sheep farm worker
Sheep farmer
Ship's engineer
Ship's master
Ship's officer
Ship's surveyor
Shipwright
Slaughterer
Stablehand
Sugar Cane Grower
Sugar mill worker
Tanker driver
Textile and footwear production machine operators nec
Textile dyeing and finishing machine operator
Tree faller
Turf Grower
Vegetable farm worker (AUS) / Market garden worker (NZ)
Vegetable Grower (Aus) / Market Gardener (NZ)
Vegetable picker
Veterinarian
Veterinary nurse
Vineyeard worker
Weaving machine operator
Wine maker
Winery cellar hand
Wood and wood products factory worker
Wood machinist
Wood machinist and other wood trades workers nec
Wood turner
Wool buyer
Wool classer
Wool handler
Yard carding and spinning machine operator
Zookeeper

Roles in the Primary sector.

02/10/2021

Scarce list — Personal carers and other critical health workers
Occupations in the health sector.

Aged and disabled carers
Nursing support and personal care workers
Special care workers
Technical and support staff working in various services including theatre, laboratories, radiology, pharmacy services, oncology, haematology, pathology, hyperbaric medicine and mortuaries
Workers who install, operate or maintain medical equipment
Workers delivering mental health and addictions services, aged care, respite, home care and support, child health, palliative and hospice care, forensic health, and disability support

Occupations in the health sector.

02/10/2021

Scarce list — Requiring occupational registration and in the health or education sector.

Occupations requiring registration in the health or education sectors.

Chiropractor
Clinical dental technician
Clinical dental therapist
Dental hygienist
Dental technician
Dental therapist
Dentist
Dietitian
Dispensing optician
Medical laboratory scientist/technologist
Medical laboratory technician
Medical practitioner
Medical radiation technologist
Midwives
Nurse
Occupational therapist
Optometrist
Osteopath
Paramedic
Pharmacist
Physiotherapist
Podiatrist
Psychologist
Teacher (including Principals and registered Early Childhood Education teachers)

Occupations requiring registration in the health or education sectors.

02/10/2021

Occupations in the Long Term Skill Shortage List.

Analyst programmer
Automotive electrician
Chef (chef de partie or higher)
Chemical engineer
Civil engineer
Civil engineering technician
Clinical psychologist
Computer network and systems engineer
Construction project manager
Database administrator
Developer programmer
Diagnostic and interventional radiologist
Diesel motor mechanic (including heavy vehicle inspector)
Electric line mechanic
Electrical engineer
Electrical engineering technician
Electrician (general)
Electronic engineering technician
Electronics engineer
Engineering professional
Environmental engineer
Environmental research scientist
Food technologist
General practitioner
Geotechnical engineer
ICT business analyst
ICT customer support officer
ICT project manager
ICT quality assurance engineer
ICT security specialist
ICT support and test engineer
ICT support engineer
ICT systems test engineer
Industrial engineer
Materials engineer
Mechanical engineer
Medical laboratory scientist
Medical radiation therapist
Multimedia specialist (film animator)
Multimedia specialist
Network administrator
Obstetrician and gynaecologist
Organisation and methods analyst
Other spatial scientist
Physicist (medical)
Physiotherapist
Procurement manager
Production or plant engineer
Project builder (including building project manager and site foreman)
Psychiatrist
Quantity surveyor
Registered nurse (aged care)
Software engineer
Software tester
Software and applications programmer
Sonographer
Specialist physician in palliative medicine
Structural engineer
Surgeon (general)
Surveyor
Systems administrator
Systems analyst
Telecommunications engineer
Telecommunications engineer
Telecommunications network engineer
Telecommunications network engineer
Veterinarian
Web developer

02/10/2021

As you may be aware, on 30 September 2021, the Government announced a new one-off residence visa pathway for some temporary work visa holders currently in New Zealand. Some critical purpose visa holders arriving in New Zealand between 30 September 2021 and 31 July 2022 on long-term visas may also be eligible for this new visa. Partners and dependents can be included as part of these residence applications.

Applications will be open in two phases from 1 December 2021 for some eligible applicants and from 1 March 2022 for remaining eligible applicants.

All applications must be submitted by 31 July 2022.

Eligibility

Applicants must have met the criteria on 29 September 2021.

To be eligible you must:

have been in New Zealand on 29 September 2021, and
be on an eligible visa or have applied for an eligible visa on or before 29 September 2021 that is later granted.
You must also meet ONE of the three criteria:

have lived in New Zealand for three or more years, OR
earn at or above the median wage ($27 per hour), OR
work in a role on a scarce list.
If you meet the criteria for eligibility but are in Australia and have been unable to return to New Zealand by 29 September 2021, you may be considered eligible.

Check if you are eligible to apply for the 2021 Resident Visa

Eligible visas
On 29 September all applicants must have been on (or have applied for and later granted) one of the following visas:

Post Study Work Visa
Talent (Accredited Employer) Work Visa
Essential Skills Work Visa
Religious Worker Work Visa
Talent (Arts, Culture, Sports) Work Visa
Long Term Skill Shortage List Work Visa
Silver Fern Practical Experience Work Visa
Trafficking Victim Work Visa
Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visa
Skilled Migrant Category Job Search Work Visa
Victims of Family Violence Work Visa
South Island Contribution Work Visa
Work Visa granted under Section 61 (provided the applicant held another eligible visa type within 6 months before being granted a Section 61 visa)
Some Critical Purpose Visitor Visas (CPVV):
Critical health workers for longer term roles (6 months or longer), and
Other critical workers for long term roles (more than 6 months).
Short-term visa holders are not eligible, such as visitors, students, working holiday makers, and seasonal workers like those on the Recognised Seasonal Employer Scheme or those who enter as short-term critical workers.

Partners and dependent children, including those currently outside New Zealand, can be included in residence applications.

All applicants must meet the heath and character requirements for the 2021 Resident Visa. Overseas police certificates will not be required unless specifically requested by an Immigration Officer. Limited medical certificates and chest x-ray certificates may be required for some people. Immigration New Zealand may request further information as part of the application process.

Individuals who do not meet the criteria will need to look at what other residence pathways or temporary visa options may be available to them.

Critical Purpose visitor holders
Two groups of Critical Purpose visitor visa holders will be eligible, as long as you arrive in New Zealand and apply before 31 July 2022.

Critical health workers for longer term roles (6 months or longer), and
Other critical workers for long term roles (more than 6 months).
If you are in a short term or seasonal role on a Critical Purpose Visitor Visa, including fishing crew, agricultural and horticulture mobile plant operators and shearers, you will not be eligible.

Applicants who have lived in New Zealand for three or more years
To be eligible under this criteria, you must have lived in New Zealand for the past three or more years and

have arrived in New Zealand on or before 29 September 2018, and
have spent a minimum of 821 days in New Zealand between 29 September 2018 and 29 September 2021 (inclusive).
The time spent in New Zealand does not need to be consecutive. There is no minimum amount within a calendar year.

If you need to check how much time you have spent in New Zealand, you are able to request your travel movements from Immigration New Zealand.

Applicants earning at or above the median wage
To be eligible under this criteria, you must be paid the median wage of NZD $27 per hour or above on 29 September 2021.

Applicants working in a job on a scarce list
To be eligible under this criteria, on 29 September 2021 you must work in a job that is on a scarce list. These are:

Jobs on the Long Term Skill Shortage List

Jobs requiring occupational registration in the health or education sector

Personal carer and other critical health workers

Specified primary sector jobs

Application process

The 2021 Resident visa will be open for applications in two phases, with the first group of people able to apply from 1 December 2021.

From 1 December 2021 you can apply if:

you have already applied for residence under the Skilled Migrant and Residence from Work categories before 29 September 2021, or
you have submitted a Skilled Migrant Category Expression of Interest, and have included your dependent child in the Expression of Interest aged 17 years or older on 29 September 2021.
From 1 March 2022 all other eligible applicants can apply, including all others who have submitted a Skilled Migrant Category Expression of Interest.

All applications must be made by 31 July 2022.

Applications can be submitted online.

More information about fees and the application process will be available on this page by the end of October.

Those who are eligible to apply from 1 December 2021 will receive an email from Immigration New Zealand by the end of October with further information.

Processing timeframes

It is expected the majority of applications will be processed within 12 months, with most being processed much faster.

Some work visa holders currently in New Zealand as well as some critical purpose visitor visa holders may be eligible to apply for residence under the new residence category – the 2021 Resident Visa.

21/12/2020

Working Holiday Visas extended by 6 months

Working Holiday Visas that expire from 21 December 2020 to 30 June 2021 (inclusive) will be extended for 6 months. Conditions will be varied to allow the holders to continue in any employment that is not permanent in any sector until their visa expires. Any time limit on total work for one employer will no longer apply.

From 21 December 2020, Working Holiday Visa holders will no longer be transferred to the Supplementary Seasonal Employment (SSE) work visa when their Working Holiday visa expires. Migrant workers already on an SSE Visa can still choose to work in the horticulture and viticulture sectors, or apply for an Essential Skills visa if they find alternate qualifying work.

21/12/2020

Lower-paid Essential Skills visa stand-down delayed for 12 months

The introduction of the stand-down period will be delayed until January 2022. The stand-down period means that Essential Skills visa holders earning less than the median wage must leave New Zealand after three years for one year before they can return.

21/12/2020

Employer-assisted work visas extended by 6 months

Employer-assisted visas expiring from 1 January 2021 to 30 June 2021 (inclusive) will be automatically extended by another 6 months. This applies to the following visas:

Essential Skills Visa
Work to Residence Visa
Special and Skilled work visas for China, Indonesia, South Korea, Philippines and Vietnam
Special category work visas for Japanese Interpreters and Thai Chefs
Employer-specific work visas granted under section 61 of the Immigration Act 2009
Fishing Crew Visa
Religious Worker Visa
Silver Fern Practical Experience Visa
Employer-assisted visas expiring from 1 January 2021 to 30 June 2021 (inclusive) will be automatically extended by another 6 months.

Visas held by their partners and dependent children will also be extended.

Visa holders will receive confirmation of the extension from Immigration New Zealand by March 2021.