[coconut]

Has anyone tried working with an immigration consultant? Any thoughts people want to put forward regarding this kind of service?

I'm mostly a disaster when it comes to paperwork and keeping on top of things just like this. I was hoping that paying some extra money might buy me some peace of mind. Am I off base with this?

Thanks.

[Ana&Steve]

I was going to post that IMO you should do it your self as opposed to paying someone, but I'm not sure if that counts as immigration advice from a non-licensed party:confused:

[Mrs Pony]

meh! I don't think it's worth it... It's easy enough to do on your own.

[matt]

I would rather jump of a tall building and hope the catch my eyelid on a rusty nail on the way down than use one of those companies! but thats just me. Everything they will need to process your appilcation will be provided from you anyway. Your best of with a quiet evening and a few beers and do it yourself online.

[L00pback]

Hi Coconut

We used an agent to process and submit our paperwork. Our reasoning was that it would make things easier and if any problems occurred then that is when their expert knowledge would come in handy.

Yes it cost more and its an expensive process to start with but for us it was the right descision.

Our ITA has just been submitted and so far the visa side of things has been painless, its all the other services we paid for that havent lived up to expectations.

So to sum up, use them to do your paperwork if it will help (like it has for us) but don't buy into the "relocation" or "job" packages that they will try and sell you.

Cheers

Alan

[Mamee & Co]

We used a visa agent for checking our submission. Whilst it was expensive and, at the end of the day they didn't have to do a lot, it helped us know that we had everything we needed and was worth it for the advice they gave us of not going for the maximum points we could, but to go for the minimum that would get us selected from the pool, as it meant that there was less to prove at the ITA stage.

[Rusty]

If you had asked 2 years ago, my answer would be to do it yourself and get all the advice and help from here.
As it is now; with INZ looking for a test case to take to court, do it yourself if you are confident or a GOOD agent if you are not.
We also had an immigration expert at work here and he confirmed that INZ are getting more aggressive at what counts as advice. Their advice on what counts as helping someone scared the watsits off me - especially the 7 year sentence.

[rogercruse]

We found the most difficult parts were filling in the EOI form (it takes forever!) and getting the paperwork (polices certificates, work references, education stuff, etc).

While getting something to do this for you sounds like a good idea, you still need to provide the basic information. So save your money for a flight upgrade!

[RJLink]

Coconut, from your self-description you sound like exactly the type of person who would get some value (peace of mind) from using a migration agent. The only issue is whether you can afford it.

[Duncan74]

We're about to submit the ITA next friday. It's not that tricky assuming you've got a straightforward case, and if I needed to do it all again then I'd still do it myself. We got a box file with dividers, set it up with the sections they ask for in the ITA checklist, and then just worked through it.

Of course the process was made so much easier by the posts on here of people 2 or more months ahead of us. I'd hope that nothing happens to prevent people discussing things like this on a forum like this.

[TheNaylors]

The opinion on this is always going to be very split and only you can really understand your own individual circumstances. For us, our agents have been invaluable and although I am stressed at this moment in time (due to a number of external factors given our present situation and being stuck with the Medical Assesor), I certainly think IMO that I am not half as stressed as I would have been if I had of done it myself...if I had to do it all again, I would not hesitate to chose the same route.

If you do go down the immigration advisor path...the advice I would give is to choose wisely, obviously make sure that they are licensed and do shop around...their services and costs differ greatly.

[stephenom]

Hi

We used a NZ based Agent, they were excellent all the advise they gave us was correct and we got PR no worries. They gave us a no obligation free telephone consultation where they advised us the best options what to do and made us aware of bonus points we did'nt know we could get. The whole process went smoothly and would recommend them to anyone.

PM me if you wish to know the company.

[joules1000]

I agree...go for it yourself.
You'll save loads and get all the help and advice you need from the forum.
We had no problems and ours was not a totally straightforward application.
Re. agents, from what I've heard it will cost and take longer to put ITA together.

Good luck

:nice1

[three to go]

I agree...go for it yourself.
You'll save loads and get all the help and advice you need from the forum.

Same here. Ours was straightforward but even so I would still have a go myself.

Joules1000 - is it your interview tomorrow? Good luck! :nice1

[coconut]

Thanks for the feedback. Its all good to hear.

I do not need any relocation help as I plan on making a nice pile in the front yard and throwing a match onto it donating it all. As for help finding a job I was hoping to just spend a few weeks watching the old man get a job whilst I "unpack" apply the old fashioned way.

If money is the only issue than I think than I think I'd rather offset some of the stress load. Already I had a melt down just thinking about doing the process. The image of the file folder with tabs..:uhoh Thank god I married a guy who already has filled boxes and boxes with important papers otherwise I'd be starting this process with no birth certificate, no passport and I'd be in jail for not paying my income tax for 9 years. :nice1

It seems like I'm hearing between 1500 and 10000 NZ for the skilled migrant category... quite a spread. I've heard 3000 - 4500 is what it will cost once we get all the fees and evaluations. Is that about right?

Also, I'm pulling the names off of the gov webpage of people who are licensed. Hopefully that means they are licensed...who knows.

Any advice or comments on any of this is appreciated.

[dusk]

Just a note to say, that as far as I know the consultants will tell you what documents you need and when but you will still be responsible for getting all the documents togather and sending them off ;) this is the reason that a lot of people do without - once you've got to do half the job yourself....and if you can get your partner to do most of the work too ;)

[Silverwing86]

If you do go for an agency, choose a NZ based one, and preferably on a 'no cure - no pay' basis (in our case, half up front and the other half only after PR approval). That way you will at least have some sense of security that they will do a good job.

Good luck !

Cheers,
Silver