More Jobs On The Green List
If you aren’t already familiar with it, the Green List is a growing list of occupations that Immigration New Zealand uses to offer various pathways to Residence, as well as identifying roles that are in demand and therefore employers do not have to demonstrate any attempts to fill locally (for Work Visas) - given we know these roles are hard to fill, it is easier for an Accredited employer to support an applicant for a Work Visa to fill one of these vacancies.
The Green List is split in to two parts, the first (Tier 1) being occupations that have a straight-to-residence option and the other (Tier 2), affording applicants a two year, work-to-residence option. If you have a job offer in New Zealand in an occupation on Tier 1 of the Green List and you meet the requirements (there are various qualification, salary or registration requirements for different roles), then you can apply directly for Residence, which the Government aims to process with priority (and so far they seem to be achieving that). If you have a job offer on Tier 2 of the list you can secure a Work Visa first, come to NZ and then work in that role for two years, before being able to then apply for Residence.
Whilst you need to meet health and character requirements for all applications and meet the English requirements and be under 56 years of age for Residence specifically, there is no points test involved with either of these two pathways. That is a pretty big advantage compared to our more traditional, Skilled Migrant Category which has a pretty complicated points scoring and selection system.
Over the last few months as labour market shortages here, have continued to bite hard, particularly in the health sector, more roles have been added to this list and some roles have been moved up from Tier 2 to Tier 1 (Nurses in particular). This reflects an ongoing need to bring in more skilled people and against that need, offering more attractive pathways to secure Residence here. The Government is slowly realising that to be competitive amongst a global fight for good skilled people, the process to bring them here has to be swift, clear and certain. This week, we have also been advised that the following specific roles will be added to the Green List from 29 May, including:
External Auditors (Tier 1)
Internal Auditors (Tier 1)
Civil Construction Supervisors (Tier 2)
Gasfitters & Drainlayers (Tier 2)
Skilled Crane Operators (Tier 2)
Skilled Civil Machine Operators (Tier 2)
Halal Slaughterers (Tier 2)
Skilled Motor Mechanics (Tier 2)
Telecommunications Technicians (Tier 2)
More Teaching Roles (Tier 2)
The first two occupations (auditors) will have a minimum salary requirement and be offered a place on Tier 1 of the list, with a straight to residence pathway available. The balance of the occupations will end up on Tier 2 of the list, offering a two year pathway to Residence, with each role having specific salary, qualification or registration requirements added in. We will also see more health related roles being added to the Green List from 29 May as well and I have no doubt that other occupations from within other sectors will be added over time.
And just in case that doesn’t do the job, the Government is adding new sector pathways to the mix. These are not part of the Green List, but where a particular sector of the labour market is able to lobby well (and loudly) enough, they can have specific exemptions and Residence pathways carved out for them - we have one already for carers who earn a particularly salary level here. This week we saw four occupations given this exemption, including Truck Drivers, Bus Drivers, Ship’s Masters and Deck Hands. People able to secure jobs here, in these occupations, paid over a certain amount per hour and employed by a suitable business, will have a three year Work Visa, with a two-year pathway to Residence. Those who are here already and working in those roles for two years, can apply for Residence from September 2023 onwards.
This is potentially good news for applicants and good news for businesses in the short term, because we need all the skills we can get to fill these immediate needs - I can testify as a public transport user, that some additional bus drivers would make life a lot easier. However it does seem somewhat ironic that after this Government campaigned very heavily on raising the skill level of our immigration system, relying less on temporary migrants to fill lower skilled and lower paid roles and “rebalancing” the overall program, we end up with these “pop-up” policies that simply react to the here and now. It has long been my view (and for those that follow my posts they should know this) that what is missing from our immigration system, and has been for some time, is a longer term view. Instead of a system that is created around reacting to current problems, we need a system that is engineered for the long-haul with enough levers and switches built-in to adapt to immediate issues and changes. This gives migrants certainty, it creates a longer term positive brand for NZ Inc. and means we become more competitive in the global hunt for talent.
It also needs to be simple. Currently we have the SMC program, the Skilled Migrant Residence Program, the Straight to Residence, Work to Residence and High Salary Work to Residence programs and now we have individual Sector Agreements with a pathway to Residence - this is all on top of the family, business and other Work to Residence schemes that exist. We continue to add, remove, chop, change and fiddle with what are all essentially the same thing.
What I have always argued for, on behalf of migrants looking to make this move, is certainty and part of that involves having a longer-term view on what our country needs in terms of its immigration approach, wrapped in a simple, coherent set of criteria. It also gives us an edge in terms of our ranking against the likes of Australia and Canada. Just this week Australia has announced a massive reshape of its immigration system, long overdue, given how complex and unwieldy it is. They want to get rid of the hundreds of different visa sub-classes and aim for a much easier to understand and navigate set of policies. For New Zealand there is a real opportunity, right now to roll out something that is simple and has longevity. Like any good marketing strategy, the more consistent and easy to understand, your brand and offering is, the better the returns.
There are also issues in rolling out Residence pathways based on knee-jerk reactions to sectors banging the drum. We need Bus and Truck Drivers right now, but will we need them in two years time or are we encouraging those people to come here to do the job whilst we need it to be done, but leaving them high and dry in the future. I am not suggesting these people aren’t skilled, and they don’t fill a vital role, however our system has shown that the higher the skill level you bring to New Zealand, the better you are able to navigate a changing job market and adapt when the market for those skills changes. When we no longer need drivers and have too many, will they have the transferable skills to adjust and adapt and fill other shortages in the market or will they simply leave to find work elsewhere?
We need to be thinking about how the skills we bring in now, will lead to growth of more jobs in the future and arguably that comes by bringing in skills that don’t just meet the current needs but future opportunities as well. We also need to think about how our migration program benefits the migrants we attract and that the people that we do approve are set up to flourish here. Short-term marketing to lower skilled and lower paid roles, to fit an immediate need, doesn’t always result in good migrant outcomes in the longer term.
Finally we have the new Skilled Migrant Category coming out later this year and the Government intends to make more formal announcements on that in May. How long it takes to become operational is another story but I would pick end of this year as likely, rather than a new set of wheels in July. The Minister has confirmed that some adjustments have been made to the original proposal, but remains tight-lipped on what those will look like. He has also confirmed that up until the new rules are released, the existing SMC system will remain in place (alongside the myriad of other pathways), so there won’t be a gap between rules. Like most policies there will be winners and losers and arguably New Zealand can’t accept everyone but I certainly hope we see something that adds a bit more certainty (and simplicity) to the process.
If you are thinking about making the move, timing is key and of course whilst the labour market is so tight and there are so many roles available, now is as good a time as any to make the leap. If you work in any of the Green List sectors or think you have a shot at the points based program, then get in touch. It all starts with an initial assessment of your options and with so many options available and changes being made, having some sound advice and a clear strategy are more important now than ever before.
Until next week!
