[Hannah]

Have tried searches on forum and immigration site but can't find an answer to this query - maybe someone here can help?

For those who have been granted residency due to a job offer, or who have been in a job for less than 3 months, section 18A will be applied to their residence PERMIT. This means that within 7 months of being granted your FIRST residence PERMIT you must demonstrate that you have met conditions of section 18A, ie. that you take up that offer of skilled employment within 3 months or you remain in the employment you have already started for at least 3 months.

I am assuming that the above section 18A stuff applies to those who have been granted a PERMIT. I also assume that if you are granted a residence VISA then you can wait for 1 year to activate that visa, then the section 18A applies. OR does it mean that you have to take up that job offer/continue working for 3 months as soon as the VISA is issued.

Also, If you apply for residency and have just started a job (as I have) and you are granted residency BEFORE you have completed 3 months of that job, I am assuming that you would be expected to continue in that job because you have been granted a PERMIT (as you are in the country, working). Is it possible to continue on your work permit, await the completion of that three months, and then pay your migrant levy to get your permit (ie. avoiding section 18A). I ask because i am going out of the country in a couple of months and worry about how section 18A is going to complicate things if i don't return to my job immediately.

Cheers guys!!

hannah

[sarahw]

Hi Hannah,

We had 18A on our residence permits. The permit reads:

Holder must take up offer of employment within 3 months of the grant of the first residence permit and remain in that employment for a period of at least 3 months.

Our visa was dated 1st Dec 2004 & we had to arrive before 1st Dec 2005. The residence permit is granted when you enter the country the first time with the residence visa.

All you do is send your passports to the local NZIS along with proof - a letter from the company you work for - to say that you have completed 3 months with the company and you will be continuing employment with them. Then voila, they cancel your visas and issue new ones without any conditions apart from transfer when the passport expires and renewal in 2 years' time.

Hope this helps,
Cheers

[Avalon]

Hannah-

We had section 18a applied on our VISA.

Ive checked through the paperwork for you- so here goes (hope it helps)

Our returning Residents VISA(issued 3/11/04) says at the bottom "Conditions" and that " Holder must take up offer of employment withing 3 months of the grant of the first residence PERMIT and remain in that employment for a period of 3 months".

We also have a Residence PERMIT stamp from the day we entered the country and that states " subject to conditions of visa". This is the stamp we got at immigration.(31.12.04) So our PERMIT also has section 18a applied.

After the 3 months - we sent in a letter from the company to NZIS - who then put 2 new blue stickers in the passports. one is a Returning Residents visa WITHOUT the previous conditions on them, and the other was our final residents PERMIT which says we can stay indefinately. There are no conditions. These were issued 1.7.05

So - in a nutshell - if you get a residence VISA (or PERMIT which I think is what you will get straight away as your are in NZ) with conditions on - just make sure you are aware of them and that you will need to send a letter to NZIS after 3 months of employment (but it has to be within 7 months of the date of the pERMIT) with your passport to get the permit changed.

This is what it said in our origianl letter from NZ|IS when our visa was granted:

Section 18a Conditions

Your residence Visa and Returning Residents visa are subject to conditions imposed under section 18a of the immigration act 1987. Under section 18a you must:

- take up your offer of employment with (Telecom) withing 3 months of the grant of your residence permit;
and
-remain in that employment (Or another position of employment that meets the requirements for skilled employment)
and
-inform inform the nearest branch of NZIS of your residential address
and
-provide written evidence of meeting the above requirements within 7 months of yoru residence PERMIT.

It goes on to say that evidence should include a letter from (telecom) on business letterhead, confirming the strat date, location of employment and business contact details.

It also goes on to say in slightly more menacing terms that if you dont give 'em the evidence within 7 months of your PERMIT being issued- your permit can be revoked and you will have to leave NZ :exit

I hope that helps - ive still got all the paperwork - so if theres anything else you need to know - I can look it up.

Hugs

[doctor]

so what exactly is the difference between WTR and getting PR with job offer especially if you get a PR through job offer, --as section 18A says you still have to show evidence that you joined a job in 3 months or so, which is a kind of like WTR where after you go to NZ, you have to show evidence that you picked up a job in a given amount of time.--

[sarahw]

No with PR with 18A you're still a resident from day 1 that you arrive WTR you're not. With 18A your continuing residence is dependent on whether you complete the work. With WTR you apply in NZ for residence.

I'm sure there's some thread somewhere about WTR vs Residence, but with residence it certainly paves the way - things like c/cards, mortgages, (and some jobs) are a lot easier to come by with residence - we applied for interest free credit on some furniture when we got here & the only way they'd let us have it was by having photocopies of the PR visa - if we hadn't got PR they would have told us no.

Also with things like adult education (have no idea about kids schooling someone else can fill you in) - I would have not been able to do the course I am doing if I wasn't a resident (or they might have made me pay a heck of a lot more!)

If you have the chance to go for residency over WTR I would go residency every time.

[Avalon]

Also with things like adult education (have no idea about kids schooling someone else can fill you in) - I would have not been able to do the course I am doing if I wasn't a resident (or they might have made me pay a heck of a lot more!)

If you have the chance to go for residency over WTR I would go residency every time.

Ditto- we found this with my brother. Cant do many courses if you arent a resident.

I think there is a thread somewhere where its explained when WTR applies instead of PR. I never really looed into it as we were always going for residence - and no one at the time was even mentioning WTR.