[kiwidollie]

Hi everyone. This is my first post but I've been reading lots of yours and finding them really interesting.

My hubby, myself and our two kids aged 15 and 10 are hoping to 'get a new life' in NZ and have contacted The Emigration Group for an assessment.

Does anyone have any experience of this group or any advice?

We are at the beginning of the whole process and it all seems a bit daunting!

We are very keen - Hubby is HGV Driver and I'm Admin Officer at a Secondary School. Neither of us has a degree or higher education so were unsure of how we would fare points wise.

Sorry if I'm rambling a bit - I'll try better next time.
:cool

[Timbo]

Welcome aboard kiwidollie.
By the look of things, I dont think you need spend all that money using an agent. Get yourself onto the NZIS website and do a dry run to see if you can get the magical 100 points to go into the pool for an EOI.
Your hubbys job as hgvdriver is definately on the shortage list. There are other hgv drivers here who can point you in the right direction.
I dont know about the Emigration group, but the agent we were using proved to be about as much use as a chocolate teapot. They tried to charge the best part of £3500 for doing VERY little.
Stick around on here and you will soon get all the answers you need to get you and your`s to NZ.


http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/

[Bubbles]

Hi kiwidollie and welcome.

There's a very good member of this forum who has gained PR by being just what your husband is... An " HGV driver ".
All I can say is, be very careful when parting with your money to immigration consultants. With a little bit of research and some good time spent on this forum, you should be able to gain all the knowledge you need to submit an application to NZIS.

Good Luck. Whichever road you take :nice1

John

[kiwidollie]

Thanks for your replies.

I'll do a dry run on the NZIS web site and see how things look.

Will get back to you.

:hopeso

[funkstar deluxe]

I recall when we were in the same situation. We thought "wow, all this info to digest, we'll never make sense of it, could do with some help"

On reflection I'm glad we didnt, we downloaded forms and read the websites and although you have to be thorough, you dont have to be a genius or expert on immigration policy to get the answers you need - especially so early on in your quest.

This forum is one of the best places to find and share information. Good Luck

[Moorf]

Our first instinct was to throw money at an agent too... so glad we found this place and did it ourselves :nice1

You'll find heaps of info here and lots of help and support from members... :P

[veronica]

We used the Emmigration Group to run a check on our Long Term Business Visa that we had prepared ourself and found them to be ok. They were cheaper and fairer than any of the other agencys we contcted, but if you are doing a normal visa I would think about doing it for yourself. Anything you get stuck on you can just ask and mostly someone on here will have hit the same problem and come up with the answer.

[daventi]

Hi. We used an agent because we were having difficulties with references for D,s job.He has sub contracted on bricklaying firms,this is basically working for himself.We had many statuary declarations to sign,and our agent has helped us greatly.It obviously takes a lot of the strain from you,but be careful if you use them, some are expensive and useless.We were lucky with our choice.All the best :nice1 Bev.

[Mildred]

We had an initial interview with them in London as our case wasn't clearcut. Husband only had 2 years as a primary school teacher but 18 years prior to this with British Gas. It was quite obvious from EG that he had a better chance of getting into NZ if he went back to his old profession which he was considering at the time anyway. Secondly I have a rare kidney disease (igan nephropathy). As advised I had a medical done which EG sent to their NZ branch where one of their immigration contacts who sits on the medical panels for NZIS went through my information. Based on this I was told there wouldn't be a problem on medical grounds getting in.

We are still in limbo about whether to take the plunge or not, but am glad we went to this agency to see where I stand. If we do go ahead with our application, we will probably now do this ourselves.

[Jo and Andy]

We were all set to use the Emigration Group in Chester, they were very helpful and confirmed the idea that Christchurch as a good place to head for.

We were definately going to use them, then I found this site, spoke to a few people (computer chat), then actually met one face to face. Decided that we could do it ourselves, with a little advice from people on the site.

We did, and were selected, just waiting for the next stage.

The fee for the Emigration Group is payable to get you selected EOI (I believe), that's daunting but you can do it.

Post your queires however silly they may seem (I did) and we will all help.
I would go with if you think your application is fairly straight forward do it yourself and spend the money on the new house.

Good luck, PM if you want any advice, glad to help anyone.

[Babette & Andy]

Kiwidollie,

I totally agree with all above comments. The process may seem daunting at first, I know it did to us, but honestly through postings here and through reading on the NZIS site, it's mostly straightforward.

We went with the Migration Bureau (based in Christchurch), parted with in total £1200 (how stupid were we :no :no ) and they've done NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING for us. We completed and submitted the EOI ourselves, kept ourselves up to date with the selection points dropping down every two weeks etc etc

In our opinion they've charged us for all the 'little' admin things like setting up our file, sending an e-mail, calling us - but all the while they never told us anything new.

Honestly, I could go on and on how stupid we feel having spent some well needed savings for when we make the move. My advise: keep hold of your money, and post any queries here. We'll all share our knowledge and experiences with you. Gladly and free of charge :nice1

Best of luck

Babette

[kiwidollie]

Hi all,

I went on the NZIS last night and according to the points indicator we do not have enough to lodge an EOI. Hubby is HGV which is immediate skill shortage but what do you do in this situation. Do you go ahead and lodge an EOI anyway even tho you know you haven't enough points, or do we try to get an offer of employment which should bump up the points enough?

I'm very confused at this stage (not unusual for me), and that's why we thought an Agency would be the way to go!

Would definitely like to save the money if possible but we thought that if the agency could help with getting employment sorted etc., then we would have better chance of being successful.

Cheers :smile

[Moorf]

How many points are you scoring dollie?

[Iain]

Hi all,

I went on the NZIS last night and according to the points indicator we do not have enough to lodge an EOI. Hubby is HGV which is immediate skill shortage but what do you do in this situation. Do you go ahead and lodge an EOI anyway even tho you know you haven't enough points, or do we try to get an offer of employment which should bump up the points enough?

I'm very confused at this stage (not unusual for me), and that's why we thought an Agency would be the way to go!

Would definitely like to save the money if possible but we thought that if the agency could help with getting employment sorted etc., then we would have better chance of being successful.

Cheers :smile

You can't submit an EOI if you have less than 100 points. Your best bet would be to secure a job offer in NZ, for that you either a) go there for a "holiday" and do a spot of job hunting, or b)cContact employement agencies/companies directly and try to get job that way. Either way I don't see how giving lots of cash to an immigration agent is going to help much. Spend the money on a trip out there instead.

[haggis4U]

Dear Kiwidoddle
We tried Australia last year and paid nearly £1000 for stuff we could do ourselves. (Won't name the agent, unless someone sends me a PM)
Although granted PR in Oz did not take up the offer as we went there on holiday and thought nice place for a holiday, but not where we want to live.
Don't go down the agency route, unless your circumstances are extremely unusual.
This forum has all the help you need :nice1

All the best

[Kim39]

Kiwidollie,

Have PM'd you. Take my offer and give us a ring tonight after 8:30 and i will put your mind at ease. :yes

Kim

[Bubbles]

Kiwidollie

Just found this on NZIS

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Immediate Skill Shortage List (formerly the Occupational Shortage List (OSL))

Added to all regions
Chip sealing, Asphalt or other Technical Manager (Roading and Infrastructure) Construction and Maintenance Managers (Roading and Infrastructure) Crane Operators, Crop Foreman, Dairy Farm Managers (and amended to read Farm Manager (Dairy, Sheep/Arable, Beef), Electronic Service Technician, Foreman (Roading and Infrastructure), Florists – Senior, Flooring Tradespersons, Glazier, Heavy Vehicle Drivers, Orchard Foreman, Osteopath, Pig Farm Manager, Plastics Die Setter, Roofing Tradesperson, Scaffolder, Sheet metal worker, Shepherd, Ski and Snowboard Technicians

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Double check your points if you haven't done so already. If it still doesn't add up and you're certain you want to go, well get out there and go job hunting, or maybe try phoning some haulage co. out there :nice1

I know there's a forum member who is an HGV driver. Can't think of his name though. maybe you could try and PM him and get more details.

HELP !!
Can anyone here think of his name

[Bubbles]

Doh !

KIM39


thanks mate :nice1

[Kim39]

:laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh :laugh Just about to let you know i'm the one!!!
Will see her right.

Kim