[minnieuk]

I read this on the NZ vs Australia thread that if you have Australian PR you would automatically get NZ PR when entering NZ. Does anyone know how this works?
We are currently sitting in the pool with 110 points because other half doesn't have an IT degree. However at the moment his skills are on the demand list for Aus so we have enough points for the current selection level. We would prefer to migrate to NZ. Although we would go to Melbourne if we couldn't get into NZ rather than stay in the UK.
If we got PR for Aus and travelled there for a few weeks/month could we then head on over to NZ and be given PR? Seems like a back-door in for us if that is really the case but seems too good to be true. Can anyone fill in some details for me?

Thanks in advance.

[Jenny & Mark]

Hi Minnieuk,

From Immigration NZ self assessment guide:
If you’re a New Zealand or Australian citizen, you don’t need to apply for residence to live in New Zealand, although you will still need to show a valid New Zealand or Australian passport on your arrival in New Zealand.
If you are entering New Zealand with a current Australian Permanent Residence Visa or a current Australian Resident Return Visa, you will normally be granted a New Zealand Residence Permit on arrival. However, you can still be refused residence if you are not of good character.

It seems to me that as long as your arrive in Australia first to validate your Aus PRV you'll be okay.

Cheers,
Mark.

[KerryS]

Marks' reply is correct. If you have PR in Australia you just get the residence permit stamped into your passport when you arrive in NZ. My brother was most amused to get one the first time he popped over to visit me... no questions asked.

[b&k]

So does the resident permit give you the same status as PR? Or does it expire after a certain period?

If you then stay in NZ for a while will you lose your Oz PR?

Sorry, I know this is a NZ forum but this thread might be giving me a cunning plan...

[minnieuk]

Sounds like your situation is similar to ours. Because the Aus Immigration will allow you to prove you have the equivalent of a degree gained by experience it makes it a little bit more flexible than the NZ insistence on an IT degree.

Getting your experience assessed doesn't look very easy though - I am trawling through all the requirements at the moment. Still it looks doable.

As I understand it the residence permit is just that - a permit to stay in NZ. You can get a RRV when you leave just as someone who has gone direct from the UK by getting PR.

As for maintaining a right to live in both Aus and NZ - that's more complicated. You would need to live in both for so many days a year to qualify for the RRV. Doesn't matter to us as we are only worried about getting to live in NZ.

[KerryS]

So does the resident permit give you the same status as PR? Or does it expire after a certain period?

If you then stay in NZ for a while will you lose your Oz PR?

Sorry, I know this is a NZ forum but this thread might be giving me a cunning plan...


The residence permit that is stamped in your passport on arrival is the same as the one that those with NZ PR have stamped in. When you leave NZ it expires, when you re-enter you get another one stamped.

If you remain in NZ then you will lose your Australian PR, as you need to maintain it in the same way you do NZ PR - by staying in the country for a certain number of days each year.