Essential skills visas are for suitably qualified and/or experienced professionals. It has become increasingly difficult for many New Zealand based employers to find skilled and experienced individuals to fill in important roles. New Zealand continues to experience significant shortage of skilled labour in industries such as construction, ICT, public health and in the culinary field. The local labour market  is often unable to meet the demands.

A large number of businesses across New Zealand are willing to offer employment to suitably skilled, qualified and experienced migrant workers. These migrant workers may be eligible to apply for a work visa directly under the Essential Skills category.

Essential Skills Work Visa Key Requirements

• To successfully qualify for an Essential Skills Work Visa, an employer must demonstrate that they have taken the necessary steps  to recruit suitable New Zealanders/ Residents available to do the work before offering you the job.
• If in the process of recruiting the employer is unable to fill the vacancy with a local, the employer may then  offer the role to a suitably qualified migrant worker. Essential skills work visa applicants can be either offshore i.e. outside of New Zealand  or onshore in New Zealand.
• In some instances, a labour market test may not be required. This is for cases where the occupations are listed under the Essential Skills In Demand lists or the employer has an Approval in Principle to recruit migrants for that role. For more detailed information check govt.nz  We have specialised experience with processing New Zealand Essential Skills Work Visa Applications as well as liaising and assisting employers with the documentation required. Our representation is detailed and comprehensive. We can advise you and your employer on the documentation to be completed and will guide you every step of the way.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
The Essential Skills Work Visa Category closes in mid – 2022. This category will be replaced by the new Accredited Employer Work Visa. Please contact us to know more about the changes.