[wolfysmith]

Has anybody gone to NZ on a visitors visa and then got jobs then applied for work visas and then eventually applied for PR?? It sounds like this would be an easier option if you were willing to actually do it. You could take police certifcates and medicals and all relevant docs with you?? I would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Thanks

[speckythecky]

It has been done and can be the easier option. We were considering it until we got a job offer.
few points - you need a return flight, or at least a flight out of NZ
don't tell immigration that you are in NZ looking for work.
you may have problems with shipping your belongings

[renew]

also be aware that the paper work is time limited.
police certs are valid for 6 months
medicals are only valid for 3 months

cheers

[speckythecky]

but you medicals are supposedly cheaper in NZ

[renew]

but you medicals are supposedly cheaper in NZ

also the fee you pay for the ITA is lower, and i dont think you need NZQA if you have a job offer. basically its all cheaper. The only down side is that you should check that you will pass the medicals.

cheers

[wolfysmith]

Thank you guys

[willemo]

Thanks for the tips! This is also a route we are considering. Out of interest... why do you consider Visitor->Work->PR an easier option?

Is it MUCH easier to get PR if you have work? Does the work give you a lot of points?

[The_scotsman30]

Like wolfy i am also considering this route to getting out to new zealand. The whole problem i am finding is the job offer. Getting a job offer while you are still in the UK is a nightmare. And as we all know the job offer is vital to the PR application. I was recently out in NZ and did loads of job offers and i know ther work is out there for me and it will be no problem getting work. I am a senior computer engineer mainly hardware servers/printers and desktops.
The timescale that is involved with moving out seems to be too long for our needs. We have completed the police reports and can do the medicals at short notice. The house is on the market so as soon as its sold we could be off. I am also interested in all you guys thoughts on this?????
I have filled out the application with the imigration group to see if they can do the PR application from here quicker but beginning to think its throwing good money away that can go towards our flights

[The_scotsman30]

Doh sorry posted it twice..lol so much for being in IT..lol

[dookieusm]

We're taking the same approach.

A few months ago when we seriously started the process I made contact with a number of NZ recruitment consultants only to be asked "so when do you arrive?". Their approach seems to be that unless you're in NZ and ready to work they're not prepared to put you in front of prospective employers. However, having said that, I'm sure there are exceptions where the candidate's skills and experience is a perfect match for the role and there's a severe shortgage of qualified candidates.

Having spent a couple of months trying to progress a NZ role from the UK with no success we decided to revise our approach. So, I've quit my job, the house is on the market and I fly to NZ mid September on a tourist visa. The plan is to set-up a number of interviews prior to leaving the UK , secure a role and get a work permit at the same time as submitting an EOI for PR.

We've already had police checks done (they expire early 2008) and my medical certificate lasts until end November. Plus, I've also got employer references for the last 12 years and letters from previous employers confirming the type of role I did. These will be useful as part of the PR process.

Prospects are excellent and have had some really positive feedback from NZ. I get the feeling that I'm now being viewed as a serious candidate and this is the boost we've been looking for all along.

As soon as I've sorted out the basics in NZ my wife and little boy will join me.

The way we're progressing our migration will not be everyone, but having the assessed the risks we reckon its worth a punt. Afterall, the worst that could happen is we come back to the UK after a while, but having given it a real go and with no regrets.

Hope this helps. At least you know you're not alone in taking this path to NZ.

[The_scotsman30]

Really good to hear your thinking along the same lines dookie. I would like to keep in touch as your timescale is the same as mine. look forward to hear how your getting on

[dookieusm]

happy to stay in touch. i'll pm you.

Steve

[Hannah]

Hi, we did the same, with 2 children in tow so not the easiest of tasks (but very fun!). Have a search through some of my older posts. We kept our house in the UK and this approach allowed us the security of 'trying things out' and seeing whether the move to NZ suited us. We both got jobs within a couple of months, so i would advise having some savings ready for in case you don't find work straight away. We rented a fully furnished house, which avoided the need for bringing stuff over.
This was a very costly option for us - as we decided to emigrate permanently in the end (we spent thousands on the original six month trip) - however, if we came over without a previous visit and shipped our stuff etc. and then returned home, you could argue that would be costly also! For us, the visitor visa approach worked - and when we came back we knew what we were walking in to in terms of making that final decision (selling up , shipping stuff, etc.) although i appreciate that for some others this is seen as more risky or not financially viable. We didn't return with rose tinted specs, and we had some friends to return to which was great.
It was a stressful process - but worked out fine in the end. I was surprised at how much work there was available in NZ, and i really appreciate now that i live here just how easier it is to get a job when you are here. In the smaller places there is certainly a culture of wanting to see who you are employing before you employ them, although at the same time i often hear of people being recruited from overseas (e.g. in health service management and clinical field where there is a desperate staff shortage)
Good luck....
hannah

[Rinkydink]

Same here...we have booked to fly the first week in October, and at the begining of August I started applying for positions. I have had a great response, but no offers as eveyone wants to meet me first. I now have 3 interviews with agencies and 12 with prospective employers lined up for when we arrive. I was upfront when I applied, my cover letter stating that I didn't have a work permit and needed an offer of employment before I could apply for it, I honestly thought that this would have a very negative effect on my applications, but suprisingly not. We have also had the police checks done, but I am a bit nervous carrying them with me in case we get stopped at customs, so are sending them on to our hotel to be collected on our arrival.

[wolfysmith]

Cheers Guys

Seems there a few of you out there thinking of doing the same. We did PM someone else who was doing the same. He contacted NZ House and they actually encouraged him to take that option as an easier route to living and working in NZ!

We're slightly different in that we actually had PR and lived in NZ but made the mistake of coming back and never renewing our PR visa's thus facing the whole process again to go back. This time now though, we've two children.

When we went out the first time we went on a work permit with a time of 6 months to find work. The reason was that we ticked all the right boxes for PR but couldn't find work before we left. It's the usual tale of no one wants to know until you're in NZ but you can't get there until someone offers you a job.

Anyhoo, we didn't really want to go through all that again and so we're looking at renting out our house in the UK. I can take a career break at work for 12 months, go to NZ, get work and from there get a work visa and finally PR when we know we are settled and ready to fully commit to NZ.

We are leaving a few bridges unburned in the UK so that if it turns to custard we can come back and pick up our old lives relatively easily.

We're going to get the police checks done before we leave the UK but everything else done in NZ. I'm hoping that we won't have to get a full job history going back to the year dot as we've had PR in the past and I'm hoping that the NZIS will still have our previous history on file. It will be a case of filling in the blanks since we came back to the uk.

That's the plan

[ruthyroo]

Cheers Guys

Seems there a few of you out there thinking of doing the same. We did PM someone else who was doing the same. He contacted NZ House and they actually encouraged him to take that option as an easier route to living and working in NZ!


We had the same advice from NZ house in London. We actually had job offers in place but ran out of time to apply for WV before leaving the UK (having confidently booked our flights already), so were advised by NZ house to go as planned, take all our paperwork / medicals etc, arrive in NZ as visitors, and then apply for WP in person (which we did and they were issued on the spot).

It was slightly nerve wracking at Immigration at the airport (especially after coming off a 14 hour flight and queing in the Arrivals Hall for 3 hours - hell is Auckland airport, I hate that place with a passion!) to be quizzed about 'how understanding your employers in the UK must be?' to be taking such a long holiday, etc etc. I reckon the guy knew exactly what we were up to!

[chazndave]

Hi,

Husband is going out in a month or so (no definate dates yet) to try and get some interviews under his belt. He will be going able to tell them of the definate date when he will be going back - and ale to start work, hopefully November time. He will be hoping to get a work visa though this, but what would happen regarding me and the baby? Do we need to get some kind of visa or would we be included on his? Also any info on whether a 2 year old needing a medical done would help. Thanks

[Moorf]

Hi

We came here in Sept 2004 with no jobs and just visitors visas. We had been selected from the EOI pool in UK but had no ITA at the time, so was just a case of "get here and find a job".

We did this with no problems - in Chch - hubby is a software developer.

See earlier thread entitled "Moorf & Woz - the early days (http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=301&highlight=%22early+days%22)".

HTH
Moorf