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What is the Green List?

You may be hearing a lot about New Zealand opening its borders to the world. This is great news for all the visa aspirants. It means that if you want to come to New Zealand to study, work, travel, or to live permanently, you can apply for a visa and come here.

The Green List contains occupations that are high-skilled, scarce and in high demand in New Zealand. Immigration has enumerated a total of 85 ANZSCO (Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations) roles in it. It includes 56 ANZSCO occupations in Tier 1 and 29 ANZSCO occupations in Tier 2.

The Residency pathways

Now, what you may not be hearing much is the super offer Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is giving to the high-skilled people. For some occupations on the Green List, it is literally giving away the residency to high-skilled visa aspirants who can meet its requirements. Immigration calls this pathway a Fast-tracked ‘Straight to Residence’ pathway.

For some other jobs on the Green List like registered Early Childhood Education teachers, etc., Immigration New Zealand is offering another pathway— a Work to Residence pathway.

I understand this may not be an easy task for most applicants but I can assure you that for the right applicants who can meet the requirements of the Green List, it is well within their reach. And with our professional guidance, your New Zealand dream can actually come true.

The list of occupations eligible for residency pathways

Jobs under the Fast-Tracked ‘Straight to Residence’ pathway

Eligible migrants employed in these occupations can come to New Zealand on a work visa from 4 July and apply for residence from September 2022. Minimum salary requirements apply where specified, and these will be indexed to the median wage and change over time.

Construction Project Manager, Project Builder, Quantity Surveyor, Surveyor, Chemical Engineer, Civil Engineering Technician, Civil Engineer, Electrical Engineer, Electronics Engineer, Electrical Engineering Technician, Electronic Engineering Technician, Environmental Engineer, Geotechnical Engineer, Industrial Engineer, Materials Engineer, Mechanical Engineer, Production or Plant Engineer, Structural Engineer, Engineering Professionals (Not Elsewhere Classified), Telecommunications Engineers, Telecommunications Network Engineers, General Practitioner, Anaesthetist, Psychiatrist, Specialist Physicians Not Elsewhere Classified Surgeons (Including General Surgeons, Cardiothoracic Surgeon Neurosurgeon, Orthopaedic Surgeon Otorhinolaryngologist Urologist and Vascular Surgeon), Other Medical Practitioners (Including Dermatologist Obstetrician and Gynaecologist Ophthalmologist Diagnostic and Interventional Radiologist and Radiation Oncologist), Resident Medical Officer, Medical Laboratory Scientist, Clinical Psychologists & Psychologists, Physicist (Medical), Orthoptist, Veterinarian, Other Spatial Scientist, Environmental Research Scientist, Food Technologist, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Managers ($120,000), Software Engineer ($120,000), ICT Security Specialist ($120,000), and Multimedia Specialists ($95,000).

The Work to Residence pathway

Eligible migrants in these occupations can apply for residence after two years:

Anaesthetic Technician, Medical Laboratory Technician, Medical Imaging Technologist, Medical Radiation Therapist, Occupational Therapist, Sonographer, Podiatrist, Audiologist, All Registered Nurses (including but not limited to Aged Care), Midwife, Teachers – Secondary with specialisations and registered Early Childhood Education, Automotive Electrician, Diesel Motor Mechanic (including Heavy Vehicle Inspector), Electrician (General) –registered, Plumber – registered, and Dairy Farm Managers.

Migrants paid at least twice the median wage in other roles can also apply for residence after two years.

What jobs are on the green list?

This is the complete Green List as mentioned on the Immigration New Zealand website.

THE COMPLETE GREEN LIST

How you can apply for a work visa for jobs on the Green List?

Required qualification/experience

The foremost step to meeting the Green List requirements can be your qualification. If you already have an overseas qualification that is equivalent to NZ standards and meets the Green List requirements, half the battle is won.

If you are unsure about whether your qualification meets the New Zealand standards, you may have to get your overseas qualifications assessed by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) if they are not on the exempted list. Don’t worry, we can assist you with that also.

Find a suitable job

For the same, you can apply yourself through job websites like seek.com OR you can engage a professional career counsellor/recruitment company who can assist you in finding a suitable job. Professional fees of the entities may be involved in such cases.

Apply for your Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV)

Once you find a suitable job with an accredited employer who has got the Job Check approved by Immigration, you can apply for your work visa. Considering that the job also meets the requirements of the Green List, there will be no requirement for the employers to advertise for the job. It is highly likely that your work visa gets approved.

For candidates who have an offer of employment, we can assess that and let the candidate know whether they are on the Green List, how that affects their partner, and if not, what their other visa choices are.

What does a Green List visa application cost?

It is the same work visa application as Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) application. The only difference can be for the employer who may not have to advertise for the Job Check. INZ charges NZ$ 595 for the AEWV application fees.

How much time it will require to get a Green List visa?

There are two pre-requisites for the employer before your AEWV application can be lodged.

1. Employer accreditation (processing time starts from 10 working days depending upon the type of accreditation0, and
2. Job Check (processing time starts from 10 working days).

After INZ approves the above, your AEWV application can be lodged. According to INZ, the estimated processing time can be 20 working days and more.

Can partners also get work visas under the Green List work visas?

Yes, if the Green List requirements are met, partners can also get a work visa with open work rights provided that they meet the partnership criteria.

What if you do not qualify for a Green List visa?

On the off chance that you do not qualify under the Green List, you can still apply for and be granted an AEWV visa and can be eligible for residency via the Skilled Migrant Category policy, which is presently under review by Immigration.

How can VisaAdvice New Zealand Limited help?

Professional Service: As a fully licensed immigration adviser, we have years of experience in dealing with INZ and have persuasive solid writing skills to satisfy the decision-making authority with our strong advocacy. Our aim is to protect of your best interest and get the job done!

Affordable fees: We provide better, personal and ongoing professional service at more reasonable and affordable fees due to our low overhead costs and our commitment to client care.

Quick and continuing assistance: We do not shut our services after the lodgement of your application and receiving our fees. We know the immigration process is a continuing journey, thus, be assured that our assistance will be continual and you can expect a revert back within 24 hours of your contacting us. Yes, every time!

Dedicated Support: With a dedicated and professional adviser who knows the Ins and the Outs of INZ’s processes and the knowledge of documentation, you can focus on your life and leave the immigration matters to us.