Silver Fern Job Search and Practical Work Experience Policies

Q: How long is the Silver Fern Visa valid from time of approval and time labels are put on passport? When must you leave for New Zealand to activate your Silver Fern Permit?

A: Once the visa label is issued, the visa allows six months to enter New Zealand to activate the nine-month permit and visa.

Q: Are the 300 available places ‘Accepted’ applications or ‘Approved’ applications?

A: Approved applications.

Q: Could you provide more clarity around trade qualifications and what is acceptable?

A:The trade qualification requirements are tightly targeted to attract people with the practical skills to make sure that successful applicants are have a high chance of obtaining work in that trade in New Zealand.

To be acceptable, a trade qualification must be relevant to an occupation on Part B or C of the list of Skilled Occupations at Appendix 11 and the applicant must provide evidence of:

• NZQA International Qualification Assessment or Qualification Assessment Report showing equivalence to a level 4 National Certificate; or
• List of Qualifications Exempt from Assessment (Appendix 5) listing showing equivalence to a level 4 National Certificate; or
• Industry registration body has assessed qualification as equivalent to level 4 National Certificate.

In addition, the applicant must have two years of relevant work experience in that trade. Work experience must be:

• in a comparable labour market (as per SMC policy)
• gained AFTER the qualification was gained (ie, work experience as an
  apprentice to gain the qualification is not counted)
• for at least 30 hours a week and gained lawfully (same as SMC again).

Qualification Recognised as an Exception (Appendix 13) are not acceptable, nor are trade qualifications at higher than level 4, nor level 4 trade qualifications that are not equal to a National Certificate.

Q: Are partners and dependent children eligible under the Silver Fern Practical Experience policy (as they are not under the Job Search policy)?

A: Yes they are, to get a Silver Fern practical experience permit the applicant will need to have secured a 12 month skilled job offer in New Zealand, so family members will able to be supported at this point.

Q: Is there a minimum salary for an applicant to meet when on the Silver Fern Permit (or the extension of the permit?)

A: No.

Q: Will the applicant receive a single or multiple entry Silver Fern Visa for the nine-month duration?

A: The visa will be issued to require the applicant to enter within six months, then from the date the permit is granted a nine month visa will also be activated (in a similar fashion to working holidays where applicants get 12 months to enter, then a 12 month permit and visa upon arrival).

Q: When do you submit your medicals, police certificates and other supporting documents?

A: Upon submitting the application online, applicants will be sent an email explaining all the documents that need to be provided and giving a three month time frame to submit these. If the documents are not submitted within this timeframe, we will send a PPI letter with a new timeframe (dependent on the standard PPI timeframes of the branch, generally related to speed of postage in the region). If the documents are not received within the new timeframe, the application will be declined.

Q: Would the online application ask for an IELTS Test Report Number if we default that we meet English Language requirements by having an IELTS Report?

A: No, but evidence of the IELTS report will be requested during processing.

Q: When will the quota go live?

A: The 2010 quota went live at 10am, 27 April 2010. All 300 places were taken in 30 minutes. The next full quota will be available 10 am, 27 April 2011. Any applications from this year’s quota that are declined or withdrawn will result in additional places becoming available, so it is worthwhile to keep checking.

Q: How will the 300 places be managed? Couldn’t some countries swamp the online application process making it difficult for others to apply?

A: The 300 places are on a first come, first served basis. It is possible that individuals with a faster internet connection may have a better chance of applying.

China Working Holidays

Q: There should be 1000 places for this but only 250 places were released in the system as it had jammed. It was noted that on 5 January 2010, the China Working Holidays stream would be open again but this never happened. Less than 6 months are left for this scheme, what is happening? Has this been rectified?

A: On 1 October 2009, we had two popular working holiday schemes (WHS) open at once: the China scheme and the Argentina one. In the initial hours of the morning, the server could not handle the demand, so only a few applicants for each scheme got through at a time, which may have given the appearance that the system had crashed. We are making some changes, including moving to a bigger database server, which will result in a more reliable system.

The next release of places under the Working Holiday Scheme has been delayed while the scheme's operations are improved. Further places will become available at a date which has yet to be confirmed.

INZ Forms and Guides – Police Certificates

Q: The Work Permit Guide request applicants to submit police certificate for subsequent applications if previous police certificate provided is more than 6 months old. This is confusing as Applicants/Advisors are under the impression that if an applicant has not left NZ, a PC is valid for two years. What is the correct?

A: Our forms have been changed to ensure that they align with policy. Character policy states that if an applicant for a temporary permit intends to stay for more than 24 months they need to submit a police clearance. Policy also states that police certificates are only valid for six months – this has not changed, but the old forms did not align with the policy. The forms now ask applicants if they are intending to stay for more than 24 months. If so, and if they haven't submitted a police certificate within the last six months, they are directed to provide one. There is provision at question D7 of the work form for people to explain why they have not attached the police certificates the form asks for.

Parent Retirement Category

Q: Could you please clarify the issues around the funds needed and the NZ$60,000 annual income requirement?

A: As well as meeting the centre of gravity requirements of family parent policy, and health and character requirements, successful applicants under this policy need to show:

• they own NZ$1 million, had the ability to have lawfully earned or acquired these funds, and to invest them in an acceptable form of investment in New Zealand for four years. An acceptable form of investment is defined in F8.10.25 (see below). Nominated investment funds must be unencumbered and cannot be borrowed. They must also be transferred through the banking system to New Zealand.
• they own an additional NZ$0.5 million as settlement funds. These funds do not have to be transferred to New Zealand, only access must be shown.
• an annual income of NZ$60,000 at the time of application. It can be from pensions; earnings from rental properties; dividends from share portfolios; interest from investments; profits from company ownership and/or share market trading. This list is not exhaustive, As with other things, this policy is new, so agents needs to explain their clients' earnings and BMB can advise.

Note that all funds can be earned and owned by the principal applicant or jointly by the principal applicant and secondary applicants.

F8.10.25 Definition of 'acceptable investment'
An acceptable investment means an investment that:

1.    is in either one or more of the following:

• bonds issued by the New Zealand government or local authorities, or
• bonds issued by New Zealand firms traded on the New Zealand Debt Securities Market
  (NZDX), or
• bonds issued by New Zealand firms with at least a BBB- or equivalent rating from internationally recognised credit rating agencies (for example, Standard and Poors), or
• equity in New Zealand firms (public or private), including managed funds and:

2.    is capable of a commercial return under normal circumstances and has the potential to contribute to New Zealand's economy, and
3.    is invested in New Zealand in New Zealand currency, and
4.    has the potential to contribute to New Zealand’s economy, and
5.    is invested in lawful enterprises or managed funds that comply with all relevant laws in force in New Zealand, and
6.    is not for the personal use of the applicant(s), and
7.    is not (directly or indirectly) invested in residential property or deposit taking financial institutions (eg banks or finance companies).

It must be invested in New Zealand, in bonds, equity in NZ firms, be lawful, and be capable of providing a return under normal circumstances. It cannot be for the personal use of the applicants (e.g. can't be in their house or bach or boat), be invested in deposit-taking financial institutions (e.g. they can't just put it in a normal bank account) or be invested in residential property development (e.g. they can't be building purpose built houses to onsell them).

For definitions and examples of evidence please see sections F8.10 Investment funds and F8.15 Settlement and annual income of the Operational Manual.

Q: How many places are allocated under the Parent Retirement Category? It states that the PRC will be included as part of the annual allocation of places for the Family sponsored stream. So how many places are allocated for the Family Sponsored stream and how many will be allocated for Parent Retirement Category? When does the annual allocation start each year?

A: There isn't a separate allocation for Parent Retirement Category: it is a subset of the Family Parent category, which has 3,440 to 3,740 places (people, that is, not applications) set aside for it (2009/10).

Applications submitted under the Parent Retirement Category will be allocated for assessment shortly after the application is received.

Q: Are there 18A conditions on approval of residence?

A: Yes, there are - when the residence visa is issued it will be issued subject to section 18A requirements that the applicants retain their funds in an acceptable form of investment in New Zealand for the four year period, and they keep INZ updated as to their address details. They will get the residence visa and an initial RRV for two years. At the end of the two year period, they have to show that they are retaining their funds in an acceptable form of investment in New Zealand, to get a second two year RRV. At the end of the four year period, applicants have to be able to show that they have kept their funds in an acceptable form of investment in New Zealand for the four year period, for the section 18A requirements to be lifted.

Q: Are there ’time spent in NZ’ requirements to get an indefinite RRV?

A: No, applicants just have to have kept their money in New Zealand for four years, (and be able to show they have met section 18A requirements) and have been on a residence permit two years previously. See our Operational Policy at X4.55 Indefinite returning resident's visa (Parent Retirement Category)

Q: What happens if someone leaves NZ during the first four years?

A: If someone is granted a residence visa and initial two year RRV, they can come and go as they please, as long as they keep their funds in an acceptable form of investment in NZ. If, however, they leave NZ and take their funds with them, they will not longer be meeting s 18A requirements and would not get a further RRV .

Temporary Retirement Category.

Q: What is maximum length of stay allowed?

A: Successful applicants (a principal applicant and their partner, but no children) under this policy will be issued with a multiple entry visitor's visa for up to two years, as long as they can show that they have invested their funds and have acceptable health and travel insurance. They can apply for another visa under this policy at the end of the first one, but will need to show that they have maintained their nominated funds in the acceptable form of investment that has been approved.

Investor Category

Q: On 30 March 2010, there was no selection for the Investor Category. What happened?

The section from the pool took place on 31 March 2010. Eight EOIs were selected; however the posting of a news item advising of this on the Immigration New Zealand website was overlooked on this occasion. We apologise for any inconvenience.