Business & Investor Visa NZ
Accreditation For The AEWV
Employers can get accreditation to use the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) to hire migrants on visas for up to 3 years.
You must pay at least the NZ median wage, unless the role is on an exemption list, and show that you cannot find suitable New Zealanders first.
If you are a New Zealand employer and would like to employ international workers, you probably want to know what is the procedure to employ foreign staff and how to become an accredited employer.
Getting accreditation would bring you potential benefits as follows:
Benefits To Your Organisation
Being an accredited employer under Immigration Laws assists your organisation to:
How To Become An Accredited Employer?
In order to lodge an application under this category, an applicant’s employer must have previously been granted accreditation.
An employer can apply to be considered as an Accredited Employer if they can demonstrate:
- They are a viable and genuine operating business, and can provide evidence of financial stability;
- They have a history of compliance with Immigration, employment and business standards; and
- They have HR policies of a high standard to provide settlement support activities to migrants.
Job Check
In order for an application under the AEWV category to be successful, applicants must also pass a ‘Job Check’ specific to their employment. In order to pass this job check, applicants must show:
- That the job pays the market rate and meets wage thresholds relevant to the occupation;
- The job’s terms and conditions comply with New Zealand’s employment law and standards;
- The job is for a minimum of 30 hours a week; and
- The job was advertised to New Zealander workers, and suitable and available NZ workers were not found for the job *
*It is, however, not necessary for the position to have been advertised to New Zealanders if the remuneration for the proposed employment is twice the median wage (currently $55.52 per hour or above); OR the job falls under the Green List occupations. Many of the Green List occupations also offer a fast track to Residence.
Entrepreneur / Investment Visas
If you are an experienced entrepreneur who want to build your own business in New Zealand, Immigration New Zealand offers you an option to obtain an Entrepreneur Work Visa then a Resident Visa.
After either six months or two years holding a work visa, if the business is profitable and if you have satisfied the investment requirements.
you can then apply for residence under the Entrepreneur Residence Category.
To apply, you’ll need to provide a detailed business plan, have at least NZ $100,000 to invest in your business and be able to claim 120 points on our points scale.
If the business is in the science or IT sectors which shows a high level of innovation or export potential, you might be waived the requirements of NZ $100,000 capital investment requirement.
Investor Visa
Business and investor visas encourage people who can invest into New Zealand’s economy to live indefinitely in New Zealand.
The program allows you to secure conditional resident visa, for you and your immediate family, which allow you to live, work and study anywhere in New Zealand.
There are two categories of Investor Resident Visa in New Zealand, Investor 1 and Investor 2.
Investor 1 Category: General requirements
- Invest at least NZ $10 million to New Zealand over a 3-year period
- Funds must be earned or acquired lawfully
- Funds must be invested in an acceptable investment
- No English language requirements
- Quota: Unlimited
- No age limitation
Investor 2 Category: General requirements
- Invest at least NZ$ 3 million to New Zealand over the 4-year period
- Funds must be earned or acquired lawfully
- Funds must be invested in an acceptable investment
- Age range is up to 65 years old
- Must have recognised business experience
- Must satisfy minimum English requirements or alternatively having an English-speaking background
- Quota: 400 per year
Whilst both entrepreneur or investor categories might sound like a position option, there are some of the advantages and limitations to both these visas, for examples these visas are conditional and only became indefinite if you maintain your eligibility over the required period.
Further, the decline rate of these visas is also reasonably high as many times the business is not actually profitable as predicted or the applicant cannot prove that their available funds are legally acquired.
If you are considering these visa types, talk to our expert team, we will be able to help determine whether you are likely to be eligible.
Contact us today for an initial enquiry
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