The term “Permanent Residence” or “PR” is probably the most commonly misunderstood Visa reference in the INZ vocabulary and that is largely because the term itself doesn’t actually refer to whether you can live here permanently or not, but instead it refers to your ability to travel in and out of New Zealand, once you have your Resident Visa approved.

PR as we will call it in this article, is actually the right to leave NZ and then return as a Resident (referred to as “Travel Conditions”) and comes with various timeframes attached. We also take a look at the options to extend these travel conditions, as well as what happens if you miss the boat on being able to turn your Resident Visa in to a Permanent one.

There is an unfortunate truth in the world of visas, which is not specific to New Zealand, but applicable to any immigration system, where human beings are involved in making decisions that impact on other peoples lives - that truth is that the outcome and the process involved to reach that outcome are very heavily influenced by the person who ends up processing the application.

You can have one set of rules, one set of standard operating procedures and one organisation in chart of all of it and yet, applicants of a similar background with similar situations can end up experiencing the process and coming out the other side, in very, very different ways.

For many migrants, particularly those arriving in New Zealand under one of our skilled categories, the thought of bringing mum and dad along, at some point, is not only an idea, but a crucial part of their move.

In this article we explore some of the current options for both a temporary and permanent stay and a look ahead at what might be just around the corner.

For most of us the holidays (summer or otherwise) have come to a close and I suspect many of us will be saying, what we say every year, that they were too short and over too quickly.

However 2024 is now firmly upon us and for many that will mean firming up plans to make the big move. If that is you, or might be you in the next month or two, then this article might be worth a read.

For most of us the holidays (summer or otherwise) have come to a close and I suspect many of us will be saying, what we say every year, that they were too short and over too quickly.

However 2024 is now firmly upon us and for many that will mean firming up plans to make the big move. If that is you, or might be you in the next month or two, then this article might be worth a read.

I think I say this every year, but I cannot believe how quickly the end of this year has arrived - and what a year it has been. There has been plenty going on in NZ over the last 12 months and there is potentially a lot more to come on the Visa front in the new year.

We wind up the year with a bit of a recap and a look to the future. We also line up for more seminars in 2024 (first one in January) and we have a small (and very useful) Christmas gift available for our regular readers.

For a number of years now, we have moved towards a Visa system that measures skill by way of the salary being earned. While there are still assessments of occupations and duties, salaries and the amount you earn has become a key part of the Visa process.

Although this system was designed to simplify thing (mostly for INZ) it creates it’s own set of problems for applicants, as well as wider issues for wage rates generally. We take a look at how it works, why we do it and whether it is all about to change.

It’s official, we have a new Government, consisting of the National Party, the ACT Party and New Zealand first. A first for New Zealand with three political parties sharing the reigns.

We also have a new Minister of Immigration and two Associate Ministers, which is a bit unusual (there is usually only one Associate). So does this signal a radical change to the immigration process…

Tis the season (almost) where INZ starts to gear up for the holiday shut-down and at the same time, more and more people are rushing to get their visas filed.

The end of the year, brings about the crazy in many of us and for the would-be migrant, it can get down-right ludicrous, trying to beat the holiday rush to achieve that crucial Visa approval.

Sometimes what we are able to achieve can appear to the average client to be magic…a visa miracle of sorts, pulling off the impossible, or the making the unachievable happen.

I will admit sometimes, it feels a little bit like that from our view, but I can assure you that what really happens is the perfect mixture of knowledge, relationships and some good old-fashioned hard work.

When it comes to visa applications, there are very few things more important than timing. Of course you have to have all the right documentation and meet the necessary criteria, but in almost twenty years of doing this, timing is the one element that trips people up more often than not.

For some people, getting the application lodged quickly is important, but for others it pays to take your time. Trying to figure out which can be a bit of a minefield and ensuring you don’t miss the visa boat is crucial.

Visa’s can confusing and the sheer volume of them can make choosing one, a similar exercise to picking desert off a menu in a foreign country.

Sometimes however the simplest of choices can be the most confusing to navigate. The humble Visitor Visa is one of those types of Visas. It can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different migrants.

All too often I hear from applicants who have landed themselves in some hot water with Immigration New Zealand (INZ) because they have either failed to declare something or something they declared was in fact not the truth.

INZ treats this stuff pretty seriously and rightly so, and for some applicants it can spell the end of their visa journey…but what happens if you genuinely made a mistake or someone else made that mistake on your behalf?

New Zealand has voted…well just under 79% of us did at least, in what felt like one of the biggest election campaigns in living memory. This election may not have seen the turnout of previous years or a landslide victory for anyone, but it certainly captured the nations attention.

Naturally, questions are starting to flow as to what this all means for the future migrant and what changes might come. Following our pre-election article, we take a closer look at what might be on the table in the near future.

This weekend, New Zealanders will be exercising their democratic voice, heading to the polls to cast their votes and deciding who will run the country for the next three years. Interestingly, just under one million of us have already voted, over the course of the last two weeks, leaving two million people, to do the same between now and when the polls close on Saturday.

For those unfamiliar with our electoral process, we operate under a Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) system, which gives people two votes - one for the party they support and then another for the local candidate they would like to back in their electorate. Each party is fighting to secure the biggest share of party and electoral candidate votes so they can hold the biggest share of seats in parliament.

A big part of what we do here at Turner Hopkins Immigration is coaching people not only on the Visa process, to reach a successful outcome, but we also give plenty of advice on the job search - which usually forms a key role in the Visa process anyway.

I have always been a big advocate for the power or a strong and useful network, particularly in a country like New Zealand, where who you know, often weighs in far heavier that what you know.

If you have never heard of a Rube Goldberg machine, then the above image might not make much sense, but to bring you up to speed, they are basically a machine that makes a simple process (like switching on a light) as complicated as humanly possible - with often ludicrous, over the stop steps added just for fun.

If you have ever tried to decipher what our current Skilled Migrant category looks like or how it operates, with the end objective being to attract skilled, employable people - you could be forgiven for thinking that INZ have created their very own Rube Goldberg machine.

It takes guts to move to another country…no doubt about it, and sometimes, even just the decision making process can turn the most stoic of people in to puddles of nervous anxiety.

It can also be very easy to over-think this decision and to talk yourself out of it. We share some tips and experiences from our clients, who have already navigated this process and taken the leap, diving head first in to a new life in New Zealand.

For applications that go off the rails, receiving a letter from INZ spelling out a myriad of concerns, issues or even just requests for more information can send you in to a panic. INZ and the letters they send have a very unique way of striking fear in to the hearts of many a migrant.

In this article we explore what happens when you get one of these letters, why you might be receiving one and what you can do to address them.

For most migrants, finding a job is not only a key to a new life, but the cornerstone of a Visa application, and so there is a lot to be said for how this process works, what doesn’t work and some of the most commonly made mistakes.

We have assisted a lot of people over the years to secure Residence in New Zealand and as part of that, we have figured out a useful tips when it comes to the job search.