The NZ government had long been planning to align the immigration, education and welfare systems to minimize migrant exploitation and making the entire procedure streamlined. This change had been proposed since 2019, where the government had brought forth a legal requirement that needed any business to be accredited before recruiting a migrant labourer as part of its workforce.
In fact, the NZ government’s legal bill needs the businesses to exhibit their credibility across various sectors like benefits, payments, workforce upskilling, human resources and labour law compliance. Employer accreditation is now a mandatory part of the new work visa application procedure and will be in practice from mid-2021.
According to several NZ immigration officials, the underlying goal behind the trailblazing procedure is to ensure the access of skills and labour for the New Zealand employers. They can address skill and labour shortage by hiring migrant labourers but never stop engaging and training more New Zealanders.
Though the NZ government is replacing six work visas with a single one, the entire refurbished accreditation procedure could pose several challenges.
For starters, this process does not make the immigration system easier for migrant labourers to migrate to the Kiwi shores. Certain immigration department officials feel that currently there is a lack of resources to handle the demand. They also feel that there should be proper consulting with respect to the particular industry where the migrant workers are migrating.
Apart from this, the entire process is immensely time-consuming. With all the new border-entry requirements, the immigration department of the country is encountering a massive backlog. Thus, businesses that are planning to get overseas workers on board should initiate the system immediately to have adequate processing time. Apart from those organizations and employers looking to hire migrant workers, those who have already engaged them under the auspices of the earlier work visa procedure, should be accredited before they request a visa renewal.
Since the entire procedure is new and not in-practice, it could be naturally overwhelming for you. If you are an employer seeking an accredited status, book a consultation with our superbly experienced immigration advisors in Auckland. We boast the most cost-effective solutions to all your immigration woes!
As part of the recently proposed makeover in the entire work visa application process, three mandatory checks are necessary.
As part of the employer check, the employer looking to engage or recruit migrant labourers in his workforce should successfully pass the accreditation. The employer-assisted work visa process only allows accredited employers to recruit migrant workers.
What are the two main accreditation checks?
Standard accreditation is ideal for employers looking to hire or engage five or fewer employers within their job ecosystem. On the other hand, if a migrant worker is hired by a Labour Franchisee or a Labour Hire company, that company or franchisee in question should be absent from a non-compliant, stand-down list. The list includes all who have broken the employment law.
High-volume accreditation is suitable for employers looking to hire six or more workers and include them within their workforce. The criteria also involves commitment from the employers to improve the working conditions and payments for their employees and to train and upskill indigenous New Zealanders continuously.
Immigration experts believe that several small businesses and entities will struggle to comply with the complexity of a mandatory accreditation system. The current procedure is already quite restrictive and the new criteria make the entire system immensely onerous for certain businesses to even attempt for a shot at being accredited.
Since exploitation ensues after a work visa is issued, the different checks and accreditation requirements before issuing the employer-assisted work visa will hardly minimize migrant worker exploitation. Only a whistle blower will help the authorities notice the employer conduct and issues of non-compliance, and an accreditation status is very unlikely to protect against the same.
If you too, are confused about the latest accreditation regime and what it entails, you are always welcome for a thorough discussion with our experienced and amicable immigration consultants. They will help you get to the depth of these issues.
Mid-2021 will witness accreditation becoming compulsory for businesses. For NZ businesses, the accreditation criteria will be challenging to meet since the post-pandemic situation will need them to locally hire and upskill their existing workforce. At least, the government will need them to commit along the similar lines.
While successful accreditation status grants approval to businesses for 12 months under the new system, renewal of the same allows them to get accredited for 24 months. But for renewal, they need to reapply after 9 months of securing the initial accreditation status.
Businesses which are already accredited can have a grace period of 24 months before they need to reapply under the new system.
So why wait? Become an accredited employer and start building your business within the thriving communities of NZ.
