New Zealand is likely facing a shortage of foreign skilled labour. To address the skill gap, the New Zealand government is changing the rules for Accredited Employer Work Visas and modifying the Job Check procedure.

New Zealand government has announced reforms to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV). These include removing the median wage threshold, reducing experience requirements to 2 years and introducing new seasonal visa pathways to support employers to fill skill gaps.

The changes will be implemented in 4 different stages beginning from January 2025.

Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is also re-designing the Job Check step of the AEWV process. The changes will help streamline the Job Check for low-risk employers and improve processing timeframes. This will be implemented from July 2025. The median processing time for Employer Accreditation has decreased from 62 days to 14, and job check productivity has doubled.

Removing the median wage requirement

New Zealand plans to remove wage thresholds for all AEWV and SPWV roles, with the median wage threshold set to be removed in March.

Employers still need to advertise and offer AEWV and SPWV employees the market rate for their position and workplace location. This change does not affect existing employment agreements. There are no changes to the wages that AEWV or SPWV workers must earn to apply for residence permits.

New earning threshold

AEWV migrants will need to earn at least NZ$55,844 a year to bring children, along with meeting other criteria. This threshold has not been updated since 2019.

Reducing the experience requirement for migrants

The experience requirement for migrants will be reduced from 3 years to 2.

Introducing new pathways for experienced seasonal workers

In November 2025, 2 new pathways for seasonal workers will be introduced, including a 3-year multi-entry visa for experienced workers and a 7-month single entry visa for lesser-skilled workers. The existing temporary seasonal pathways will remain available until then.

Increasing the visa duration for ANZSCO Level 4 or 5 AEWV holders to 3 years

Following feedback through consultation, the visa duration will increase to 3 years for new AEWVs issued for jobs assessed as skill level 4 or 5 on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO).

The visa length will change from 2 years (with the option of 1 additional year) to 3 years to align with the total time these workers can stay in New Zealand (their maximum continuous stay). Those currently on a 2-year visas will be able to apply for a further AEWV for 1 year if they meet the requirements.

Interim visas

From April 2025, interim work rights will be extended to AEWV applicants who are applying from any work visa type or from a student visa that allows them to work during term time, supporting migrants to maintain employment while their visa is processed.

Amending the Work and Income engagement requirement

The current requirement for employers to engage with the Work and Income will be amended to be declaration-based. Employers must declare that they have, in good faith, advertised ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 jobs with Work and Income and interviewed candidates who could have been suitable for the job. There will also no longer be a set 21-day timeframe for the engagement with Work and Income.