New Zealand has shown positive signs as far as Immigration is concerned! The annual Immigration growth touched an all time high in the last five years with the arrival of permanent migrant outshining departures by 21,253 in the year 2009, confirmed Statistics New Zealand.

The statistics are having a positive impact on the Kiwi economy. Alan Bollard, Governor of Reserve Bank confirmed that NZ economy is gradually coming out of the economic catastrophe.

The growth in immigration might fuel consumer spending and accelerate a demand for housing in the country. Also, fewer citizens are leaving the country as compared to last few years. Close to 41,600 citizens left NZ to settle abroad last year, 19,160 fewer than in 2008.  The figures clearly show that departures are falling at a gradual level.

Recession had a huge impact on NZ tourism, while other parts of the world were not left untouched too! Promotion of the Kiwi Land as a prospective travel destination for Aussie people also enhanced the number of visitors coming to NZ in a major way. The visitors from Australia rose by 11%.

Reports also show that 341,000 people came to NZ in December, as compared to 322,000 in December 2008. More arrivals would mean aiding spending in an industry, hence enhancing the NZ economy. The news is surely a positive ray, not only for the NZ citizens but for all those immigrants who are planning to move to New Zealand.

According to a survey released by Asia New Zealand Foundation, Asia would play a critical role in New Zealand’s economy in the upcoming future. The stats depict that 81% believe Asia is important to the NZ’s future while 40% out of them think it to be immensely important. The reports from 2008 stated that 75% would believe that Asians would play a critical role for the Kiwi future.

The report also said that more Kiwis think that free trade agreements would enhance the Kiwi economy; the stats went up from 74% to 78% as compared to 2008. Talking about those who think that import from Asia would favor the NZ economy, the number enhanced from 58% to 63%.

Richard Grant, executive director of the foundation elaborated that the survey was based on questions that had connections with recession, economic crisis and its impact on Immigration. It forced the respondents to think about the state of Kiwi Land in the upcoming years. In addition, they were asked questions on various facets that would affect the country, particularly Asian tourisms, free trade, to name a few.

Trade Minister, Tim Groser said that Asian was never so critical economic factor for the Kiwis.  Ethnic Affairs Minister Pansy Wong said that the outcome is really pleasing. The reports clearly signify that Asia and NZ have a lot in store for each other as far as the future years are concerned.

In this era of globalization, Immigration is playing a critical role in enhancing the economies of various countries!

It is interesting to note that more and more highly skilled people from around the world are opting to immigrate to New Zealand. Even more interesting is that most of these skilled migrants are from more developed countries like United Kingdom, United States and The Netherlands, where professionals are offered with higher salaries. So, what makes these migrants to immigrate to the land of Kiwis?

Even though the salary packages offered in New Zealand are lower than that of the US and UK, immigrating to the former makes sense for overseas skilled migrants, reason being the cost of living there is much lower as compared to the aforementioned nations. Professionals find it worthy to go and make a new life in New Zealand with their families. The country has an array of things to offer- along with its spectacular beauty; it offers endless recreational opportunities for families, children; and most importantly people can find a house on their budget. Thus, low cost of housing, food and cars make New Zealand more attractive to overseas professionals when compared to the US, UK or Northern Europe.

In other words, if you get to work with a satisfactory New Zealand employer, you can expect to spend a well-balanced life there! You can find many self-confessed migrants in New Zealand who would tell you how their quality of life is better than their home countries or elsewhere in the world!

If you are intending to immigrate to New Zealand to have a better life, do consult an Immigration and Visa Consultant, so that you can sail through the immigration process without any hassle!

Recently, this year’s first draw for expressions of Interest (EOI) for the category of Skilled Migrant took place. The draw on January 13, picked up a total number of 593 Expressions of Interest. Now that the selection of the EOI is over, the selected applications would be processed for preliminary check. The check will determine if the applicants would be issued with an invitation to apply for New Zealand residency.

Below are a few highlights of the draw taken place on January 13, 2010:

• A total number of 483 Expressions of Interest, with total points of 140 or more being selected this time.
• A total number of 110 Expressions of Interest, with total points of 100 or above, (however, below 140) being selected.
• Out of the 593 applications, a total number of 521 Expressions of Interest were from those who have New Zealand job offers.

The first Expressions of Interest draw of 2010 under the aforementioned category brought disappointment to many applicants who wished to immigrate to the Kiwi land. A total of 631 Expressions of Interest were not selected. These EOIs remain in the pool, for the applicants might have met the general requirements needed to immigrate to New Zealand, but they could not satisfy the criteria set for the Expressions of Interest pool selection.

Now, these applications will be in the pool for three months and may get selected in another draw in the near future. However, if the EOIs are not selected after three months, the applicants may require to submit Expressions of Interest again!

If you are intending to migrate to New Zealand and want to work with an employer there, here is a little information for you! There are a few basic things that all employers in the Kiwi land give importance on in order to allow migrants to work. You would require to meet all these prerequisites before you could get to work in New Zealand.

Below are the requirements that a New Zealand employer would expect you to fulfill, so that it can allow you to work:

• To be eligible to work in New Zealand, you should have good skills of English language, especially a good verbal communication skill.
• The relevant authority must approve your degrees and qualifications.
• You must hold positive feedback from your previous employer.
• Last but not the least, you must hold a lawful work permit/residence permit.

If you are capable of meeting the requirements and have all the essentials, then you can expect to work in New Zealand. However, there may be complications in certain cases. Therefore, it is always advised to seek the help of an immigration specialist in this regard!

Here is a brief info about the English language requirement:

With the amendments made to the New Zealand Immigration policy in the year 2007, the requirement of excellent English language skills has become vital for the applicants aspiring to work in the country. To start off, immigrants applying under Skilled Category need to obtain a minimum of 6.5 points in an IELTS test.

Another important thing you should remember is that along with excellent language skills, including fluency, New Zealand employers also give considerable emphasis on the accent!

For further information on the requirements of Skilled Migrant Visa Category, contact an Immigration and Visa Consultant!

Intending to migrate to the land of Kiwis under the Active Investor Migrant Category? Well, in that case you can fly to the country through three types of visas. How about migrating under the Professional Investor Visa? But, before you start making your planner, let’s have a look at the requirements set by the Immigration New Zealand for applicants of this visa category.

Below are a few requirements to obtain the Professional Investor Visa:

• You must be 64 year-old or younger.
• You must have at least NZ$10 million to invest, out of which $2 million should be actively invested.
• You must meet the minimum English language standards.
• You must have good character and normal health.

Once an applicant is issued with the Professional Investor visa, he/she will need to invest the funds in New Zealand for a period of 4 years. Besides, he/she will need to spend a minimum period of 109 days each year in New Zealand during second, third and fourth years of the investment period.

The individual/individuals with approved visa are given conditional permanent residence, as per the Immigration Act 1987 (section 18A). Once the requirements, such as investment for the 4 years and spending 109 days of the year in New Zealand are fulfilled, the individual will be provided with unconditional permanent residence permit.

Individuals with approved Professional Investor Visas are also provided with Returning Resident’s Visas. A RRV allows an individual to travel in and out of New Zealand for 2 years as a New Zealand resident.

For more information on Professional Investor Visa Category, contact an Immigration and Visa Consultant!

The New Zealand Family Visa Category states that you must have a close relative already living in New Zealand in order to be eligible to apply for this type of visa. In other words, you may apply for the Family Visa, only if a close family member who resides in the country or who is a New Zealand resident sponsors you. It also requires you to be in one of the four groups. They are the sub-classes of Family Visa category. Let’s have a look at them:

• Partnership: This states that you may apply for a Family Visa to go to New Zealand, given you are the spouse or a genuine partner of a person who is a permanent resident or citizen in the country. You may be allowed to apply even if you have same-sex relationship of at least twelve months with a New Zealand resident.
• Parent: Again you can apply for the visa as a parent of a New Zealand permanent resident/citizen. However, there is one condition applied to this category- you must have the same or greater number of adult offspring (resident) in New Zealand than any other country in the world.
• Dependent Child: If one of your parents (or both) is a New Zealand citizen/permanent resident, then you can also apply for permanent residence in the country.
• Sibling or Adult Child: You can again apply for New Zealand permanent residence if you have your brother/sister or parent who is a citizen and permanent resident in the country.

As a New Zealand permanent resident/citizen, you can sponsor any individual who fits the bill as mentioned in the above categories.

The Dependent Child Visa comes under the Family Category. The Dependent Child policy allows children to move to the land of kiwis to be with their parents. Under this category, as a parent you are allowed to sponsor your biological, as well as legally adopted children. For this, however, you must be a citizen or permanent resident.

Basic requirements to obtain the New Zealand Dependent Child Visa:

Immigration New Zealand has set a number of prerequisites that need to be fulfilled by the applicants. Below are some of them:

• The child must be 16-year-old or younger or 17-24 year-old, with no dependent children.
• The child must meet the health plus character standards.
• The child must be completely dependent on an adult financially, no matter whether he/she lives with the adult or not.
• The dependent child may be required to produce evidences to support his/her relationship to the parents, as well as the latter’s residence status/proof in the New Zealand.
• The dependent child must have been born or adopted prior his/her parents applied for New Zealand residence/declaration of parent residence application or
• He/she must have been born after the parents applied for New Zealand’s residence application or
• He/she was adopted as per the New Zealand law.

Once all the prerequisites are fulfilled by the dependent child, he will provided with a permanent residence visa, so that he/she can live with the parents permanently in New Zealand. Besides, the applicant will also be issued with a Returning Resident’s Visa (RRV), which will allow him/her to travel in and out of New Zealand for maximum 2 years as a New Zealand resident.

To know more about New Zealand Dependent Child Visa, contact an Immigration and Visa Consultant!

The New Zealand Entrepreneur Category requires you to run a successful business for two years in New Zealand as a prerequisite to obtain permanent residence in the country. Thus, before you could apply for an Entrepreneur Visa, you are required to obtain a Long Term Business Visa popularly known as LTBV.

In order to obtain a LTBV, you will need to convince the Immigration New Zealand that you have a good New Zealand business plan. Once you are provided with a LTBV, you will need to operate your business there successfully for a minimum of two years. When you meet this requirement, you are eligible to for apply for permanent residence under the Entrepreneur Category. However, this is not the sole requirement. The Immigration New Zealand will require you to have at least 25 percent shareholding of the business, as well as active role in managing and operating the business.

Besides, Immigration New Zealand would like to know that whether your business is benefiting or has benefited New Zealand’s economy during the years. To prove the same, you may need to produce evidence that will support:

• That you have revamped your business
• That you have launched new products and services
• That you have generated new job opportunities in your business
• That you have expanded new market access.

Things to Remember:

Your application to obtain an Entrepreneurship Visa will not be considered by Immigration New Zealand in certain cases. For instance, if your business established in New Zealand is different from the business that you mentioned in the LTBV application. In certain cases, the Immigration Service can still accept your application. To know more about this, contact an Immigration and Visa Consultant!

Under the Business Category, the Immigration New Zealand allows people to reside in the country both temporarily and permanently. With this program the country encourages business people, entrepreneurs and investors from all over the world to establish or run business in New Zealand.

There are basically three options included in the Business Category- (1) Long Term Business Visa (LTBV); (2) Entrepreneur Visa; and (3) Investor Visa. Today, let’s have a look at the Entrepreneur Category:

The Entrepreneur category is basically aimed that attracting successful business people and encouraging them to obtain the permanent residence in New Zealand and continue their contribution to the country’s economic growth. In order to qualify for residence under Entrepreneur category, you must meet the following requirements:

• You must have run a business successfully or be lawfully self-employed in a business for a minimum period of two years in New Zealand under a different visa. You must have an active involvement in the operation and management in that business.
• You must have invested at least 25 percent in the business. In other words, it requires you to own at least 25 percent of the shareholding of the business.
• You must produce evidence that can support that your business is benefiting in New Zealand. Appropriate evidence should also support that the business is meeting the country’s employment and immigration law.
• You must prove that your partner or children have not applied for or received any assistance in the name of welfare during the days in New Zealand.
• You must meet the standard health, character and English language requirements.

Always make sure you seek the help of a professional Immigration and Visa Consultant for any issues related to obtaining visas!