[RamblingPaddies]

hi folks,

i have a few dumb beginner's Qs about the job getting process ... please bear with me :o

after reading some posts on this forum, there are pros and cons to going to NZ on a job hunt and to waiting till you get there ...

my Qs are :

if in NZ without PR or a working visa (yet), what difference will there be to an employer ... i mean, without the above you still cannot work legally right ?

won't an employer still prefer someone who is qualified to work over someone who isn't yet ?

is an employer likely to hold a job for you while your visa comes through ?

how does it work to go about applying for a job while there basically on holiday ?

won't you get deported or refused entry if the border guys think you're coming here to apply for a job, without having the papers ?

[Ana&Steve]

hi folks,

i have a few dumb beginner's Qs about the job getting process ... please bear with me :o

after reading some posts on this forum, there are pros and cons to going to NZ on a job hunt and to waiting till you get there ...

my Qs are :

1 if in NZ without PR or a working visa (yet), what difference will there be to an employer ... i mean, without the above you still cannot work legally right ?

2 won't an employer still prefer someone who is qualified to work over someone who isn't yet ?

3 is an employer likely to hold a job for you while your visa comes through ?

4 how does it work to go about applying for a job while there basically on holiday ?

5 won't you get deported or refused entry if the border guys think you're coming here to apply for a job, without having the papers ?

Hello, I'll try to answer, but a lot of it will be based on opinion, please bear that in mind!

1 You cannot legally work in NZ without a work permit or work visa

2 Depends on how badly they need the role filled, and how many qualified applicants there are

3 Again, it depends on how much difficulty they have had filling the role; it might help to know what line of work you are in, as there are a lot of specific skills within some fields (like IT) that the employer will bend over backwards to get you into the role.

4 It works just fine! We brought a laptop and a flash drive, as no one really seems to want your paper CV ( at least not in IT in Welly) and too much paper can tip off the guys at the airport.

5 This is a bit of a gray area to my mind. It isn't illegal to job hunt, house hunt, or even apply for work visas while in NZ, but it is illegal to plan on overstaying. If the officers at the airport have enough suspicion that you intend to overstay, they will deny you entry.

Hope that helps, and others will be along soon to offer up their knowledge!
Ana

[swissmissdesigner]

I will Ana hire as a private immigration secretary!!!
She nows everything about immigration.:clap

[skibumwa]

As someone else said, you are allowed to go there to interview, look for a new home, etc as long as your plan is to leave within 90 days on your visitor visa/passport. You need proof of a round trip flight to enter NZ though.

Getting a job? Well I did as someone else here in the forum called a 'blitz' approach to getting a good job before ever applying for a Visa or PR. Read my other post here to give you some food for thought:

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=12190

If you happened to work in I.T. as a Senior Test Analyst (my hired title) or anything like that, you'll do fine especially in Wellington! I was supposed to start on June 18th :uhoh. My employer is & has been very understanding and patient which gives me more & more respect for them everyday as this is immigration process out of my control. Like everyone else on this forum, I'd rather be in NZ living and working now! My 30 month visa should be back to me within 2-3 weeks now.

I hope it all works out for you. :yes

John

hi folks,

i have a few dumb beginner's Qs about the job getting process ... please bear with me :o

after reading some posts on this forum, there are pros and cons to going to NZ on a job hunt and to waiting till you get there ...

my Qs are :

if in NZ without PR or a working visa (yet), what difference will there be to an employer ... i mean, without the above you still cannot work legally right ?

won't an employer still prefer someone who is qualified to work over someone who isn't yet ?

is an employer likely to hold a job for you while your visa comes through ?

how does it work to go about applying for a job while there basically on holiday ?

won't you get deported or refused entry if the border guys think you're coming here to apply for a job, without having the papers ?

[zardell]

You don't just have to be in IT to get a job offer - professionals in many fields as well as trades people are very much sought after, it's just that the people in IT seemed to be the ones to answer your post first, so if IT isn't your field of work - don't worry.

We came out here on with PR, so a work permit wasn't an issue for us, but I have heard of people arriving in the country, securing a job and getting a work permit granted within a few days........but dont take my word for it - wait 'til someone who's done it comes along here !!

I'm also of the belief that you will only be granted a work permit (maybe there are exceptions?) once you have secured a job....bit of a chicken and egg situation, but I'm happy to be proved wrong.

Good luck.

Julie

xx

[skibumwa]

Actually a 'work permit' is just what the NZ Customs gives you once you land in NZ for your move for your new job. You are granted a Work Visa that automatically gets converted to a Work Permit once you land & meet NZ Customs in Auckland or Wellington airports. Work visas take at least 2 weeks to process - even if you are in NZ (don't believe the hype!- hehe). Remember you need all the police checks and the medical form 1007 completed before you submit your visa application. This all assumes of course that your blood test numbers are all 'normal' and you don't have any possible medical 'issues' (small or large) to possibly slow up your Visa. If you have anything at all remotely wrong or not normal on your medical papers, NZIS can take up to 3 months to process you work visa.

To Zardell, you are right about IT jobs vs. other careers and what's needed in NZ. I can only quasi speak for IT jobs and the good market there... :-)

John

[KerryS]

I have heard of people arriving in the country, securing a job and getting a work permit granted within a few days........but dont take my word for it - wait 'til someone who's done it comes along here !!




That's me - and I didn't work in IT at the time. I had a job offer, completed the paperwork and got my work permit in less than a week. I believe the processing times are longer at the moment as there is a huge backlog.

You do need a job offer to apply for a work permit - and contrary to what Skibumwa says, you need a permit to be legally employed, my employers have always asked for a copy for their records. And I was already in the country, so didn't need a work visa - this is what you need to actually enter the country, but I got one so I could leave and re-enter.

If applying for a work permit of less than 12 months you don't need to have a medical or police check.

[zardell]

Actually a 'work permit' is just what the NZ Customs gives you once you land in NZ for your move for your new job. You are granted a Work Visa that automatically gets converted to a Work Permit once you land & meet NZ Customs in Auckland or Wellington airports.John



Hi John.

See if I have I got this right: you apply for a work visa in your country of origin if you have been offered a job in NZ and then it converts to a permit once you are in NZ so you take up that job. However, if you come here on holiday and realise that you would like to stay, you can apply for a work permit (without previously being given a work visa) once you arrive in NZ and are fortunate enough to secure employment after your arrival ?

Think I need one of these.....:cheers

Julie

xx

[Ana&Steve]

Hi John.

See if I have I got this right: you apply for a work visa in your country of origin if you have been offered a job in NZ and then it converts to a permit once you are in NZ so you take up that job. However, if you come here on holiday and realise that you would like to stay, you can apply for a work permit (without previously being given a work visa) once you arrive in NZ and are fortunate enough to secure employment after your arrival ?

Think I need one of these.....:cheers

Julie

xx
That's right!
Ana

[skibumwa]

...for over a year, you need (for US Citizens) an FBI background check and the form 1007 completed with all sorts of blood tests done. You also need a formal job offer too.

Personally: I don't want go to the expense of moving 8000 miles away for a job that's going to last for less for a year only to have to move out of NZ. My goal is to get a PR the first 3 months I am here. This is permanent move for me. I mean why would I want stay go back to the USA where my quality of life will be 1/5 of what it will be in NZ? :laugh

So all the advice I got and follow, comes from a few NZ Visa officers hence why I trust their advice... :yes
---------------------------------------------
To KerryS: I never said you DO NOT need a job offer to get a 'work permit'. I said,

Step 1: Secure a job offer
Step 2: Get a work visa (what ever kind you want: x < 1 yr or x > 1 year)
Step 3: Fly/move to NZ
Step 4: Upon arrival in NZ, NZ Customs at the airport converts your work visa into a 'Work Permit'

I hope this clears up what I said? If not, please PM me :)

[skibumwa]

One Visa officer told me otherwise.. :)

That's right!
Ana

[eternalkiwi]

You need a visa to enter NZ, you need a permit to stay in NZ.

Therefore if you are already in NZ you do not need visa until you leave NZ (for a holiday or longterm). To return back to NZ you would need a visa, even if your permit is still current.

This is similar to the difference between your PR & your RRV.

Shawn

[Ana&Steve]

One Visa officer told me otherwise.. :)

What did he/she say?:confused:
This is the way it was explained to us by several different people including the NZ consulate in LA: If you get a job offer while in your home country, you apply for a work visa. If you get a j/o while in NZ, you get a work permit. If you have a work visa, it gets changed to a work permit when you come to NZ.
Please elaborate!
Ana

[KerryS]

Ana - you're correct. I've had loads of friends move over to NZ from Europe and the US and did exactly what you said.
The visa process is very clear - you need a visa to enter NZ, a permit to work in NZ, which can be issued on entry, or issued in the country if you are already in situ.

I personally recommend going for less than a year if you intend to get PR within a short timeframe, otherwise you have to pay out for medicals, police checks etc all over again as they only last for a short period. (3 months for medicals and 6 for police checks.) But this could just be me being a cheapskate - I had loads of work permits and was here for over 2 years before I even decided to apply for PR...

[speckythecky]

there are no dumb questions, just questions that you do not know the answer to yet. It is only dumb if you have questions but are too afraid to ask them.

[RamblingPaddies]

thanks everyone for their opinions ...

another Q

lets say everything goes to plan and they approve your PR - how long do you have to land in NZ ?

[hachajo]

Sorry for what is probably a really silly question (& if it's already been answered & I've missed it somehow!!) but I can't understand how if i secure a job offer from the UK, by the time I can realistically get myself over to NZ (bearing in mind married with 3 small kids!!), surely my potential new employer won't be prepared to wait that long?? Is it a case of "you get a job offer - you get yourself over there??"

Thanks everyone!!!

[HelenandPhil]

Rambling paddies - 12 months from the date of getting your blue stickers issued until the date you have to arrive.

... As for how long employers will wait...it really depends on the employer, I have had some interviews where I was unsuccessful because it would be too long after the job offer before I could realistically arrive, yet for the job I have taken my employer has been happy to wait 3 months for me to arrive. I would suggest that it is worth discussing this with prospective employers at the earliest opportunity otherwise you could be wasting your time and theirs going through the recruitment process.

...Good luck ( and dont take it for granted that you will get relocation....)