IMMIGRATION NEWS

Address by Minister of Immigration - Iain Lees-Galloway at NZAMI Conference – 23 August, 2019

The policy announcements were due in June but no announcements are made yet.


Minister of Immigration - Iain Lees-Galloway addressed the NZAMI Annual Conference on 23 August, 2019.


The accreditation proposed in the new policy will not be the same as the current employer accreditation.
If the employers want to hire few migrants – 1 or 2, then the accreditation requirements will be basic, a very light
touch. However, if an employer wants to hire more employees, then they will need to go through more checks.


Hospitality industry is reliant on migrant workers. Even though these are small businesses, this sector employs more migrant workers. In the new policy, will there be provisions for this sector?
Minister of Immigration stated that this sector has a lot of risk- migrants are underpaid and work for longer hours. If the companies want to hire migrants, they need to up their game.


The consultation paper will be put before the cabinet in next couple of months. The plan will not be rolled down at once- but gradually. There will be some time given.
Migrant exploitation review report to be submitted by the end of the year. There will be a review of the low-skill stand down period also.


Will there be an increase in the threshold for accredited employer Work to Residence?
Most likely because this threshold has not increased since many years and is not meeting the purpose of this visa. category.