londonmonkeyboy
22nd August 2006, 10:19 AM
OK
Haveing read everyone elses experience I hope my own very condensed timeframe may help someone or persuade everyone else not to follow my example.
For the benefit of anyone as disorganised as me here is an overview of the timescales involved so far in my bid for Temporary Work Visa General:
Two years ago have provisional chat about NZ job that never materialises
Year and a half ago Go out to NZ for a month as a best man, do a bit of travelling and think this is pretty cool. Go back to London and get more and more depressed about working in a city of 8 million people. Ignore your NZ friends telling you to get stuff ready as nothing is happening on the job front in my specialist field.
Start of July Post in specialist field comes up but firm unable to wait for EOI WTR process (which I hadn't started due to continual delays in expanding field that never materialised). Do some research and decide to apply under general work visa (temporary) which should have a processing time acceptable to the company. Post must start by the end of September.
Middle of July submit application for job and selected for interview, study up like mad over the weekend for telephone interviews the week after.
Finally get around to submitting police clearance form (UK Police - this is a "subject access request under the data protection act 1998")
last week of July [B] Interviewed in the last week of July, 4 days later advised that references are being taken up, offered the job end of July.
[B]Start of Augustaccept job and start panicking - 20 odd days remain for Police to return form (luckily it is 40 straight days including weekends and bank holidays - not just working days). Start phoning around for medicals (as it is a 12 month contract) start panicking even more when told of 2 and 3 week waits for appointments. Manage to get one in 2 days time on Harley St with results available for collection 2 days later.
Start of AugustHand in notice at work :nice1 Start drawing together evidence of qualifications and experience
Middle of August receive FOI request for Police Records after 37 days - panic as it states quite catergorically that it is not a record of good character. sear ENZ madly for 15 mins till I'm assured that this is just Police humour to wind up everyone attempting to emigrate. Collate evidence.
For my evidence I went for Current and previous contracts and job descriptions supported by pay slips with titles, chronological business cards, letters of commendation, reference from line manager, letter from CE where they signed off a re-written CV outlining key tasks / projects.
4th week of August Visa application submitted - have I left it too late? 4 weeks until I travel - 5 weeks until I start work. Will keep you posted.
Submitted in person at NZ House and very friendly they were too, checked everything and in and out in 40 mins.
One thing I'm still not clear on though is whether as I have a 12 month contract I will only get a visa for that period or whether there is normally a 2 or 3 year visa. The Guidance alludes to some visas having different timescales but I did not find it very clear.
Still need to remortgage flat for Buy to Let (more complicated than thought because of adjacent commercial property :mad: ) let said property (including various last minute jobs and Safety checks), sort out whether I make voluntary NI payments for a year, sort pension, sell car, sell road bike, pack mountain bike, put 80% of possesions into storage at Mums (in anticipation of eventual application for residency) get used to living with 20% of my possesions for the next 3 weeks, try and catch up with everyone I have been slack in seeing over the last 5 years, anyone else I fail to catch up with - invite out to NZ??!!
Anything i've missed? Thanks
Haveing read everyone elses experience I hope my own very condensed timeframe may help someone or persuade everyone else not to follow my example.
For the benefit of anyone as disorganised as me here is an overview of the timescales involved so far in my bid for Temporary Work Visa General:
Two years ago have provisional chat about NZ job that never materialises
Year and a half ago Go out to NZ for a month as a best man, do a bit of travelling and think this is pretty cool. Go back to London and get more and more depressed about working in a city of 8 million people. Ignore your NZ friends telling you to get stuff ready as nothing is happening on the job front in my specialist field.
Start of July Post in specialist field comes up but firm unable to wait for EOI WTR process (which I hadn't started due to continual delays in expanding field that never materialised). Do some research and decide to apply under general work visa (temporary) which should have a processing time acceptable to the company. Post must start by the end of September.
Middle of July submit application for job and selected for interview, study up like mad over the weekend for telephone interviews the week after.
Finally get around to submitting police clearance form (UK Police - this is a "subject access request under the data protection act 1998")
last week of July [B] Interviewed in the last week of July, 4 days later advised that references are being taken up, offered the job end of July.
[B]Start of Augustaccept job and start panicking - 20 odd days remain for Police to return form (luckily it is 40 straight days including weekends and bank holidays - not just working days). Start phoning around for medicals (as it is a 12 month contract) start panicking even more when told of 2 and 3 week waits for appointments. Manage to get one in 2 days time on Harley St with results available for collection 2 days later.
Start of AugustHand in notice at work :nice1 Start drawing together evidence of qualifications and experience
Middle of August receive FOI request for Police Records after 37 days - panic as it states quite catergorically that it is not a record of good character. sear ENZ madly for 15 mins till I'm assured that this is just Police humour to wind up everyone attempting to emigrate. Collate evidence.
For my evidence I went for Current and previous contracts and job descriptions supported by pay slips with titles, chronological business cards, letters of commendation, reference from line manager, letter from CE where they signed off a re-written CV outlining key tasks / projects.
4th week of August Visa application submitted - have I left it too late? 4 weeks until I travel - 5 weeks until I start work. Will keep you posted.
Submitted in person at NZ House and very friendly they were too, checked everything and in and out in 40 mins.
One thing I'm still not clear on though is whether as I have a 12 month contract I will only get a visa for that period or whether there is normally a 2 or 3 year visa. The Guidance alludes to some visas having different timescales but I did not find it very clear.
Still need to remortgage flat for Buy to Let (more complicated than thought because of adjacent commercial property :mad: ) let said property (including various last minute jobs and Safety checks), sort out whether I make voluntary NI payments for a year, sort pension, sell car, sell road bike, pack mountain bike, put 80% of possesions into storage at Mums (in anticipation of eventual application for residency) get used to living with 20% of my possesions for the next 3 weeks, try and catch up with everyone I have been slack in seeing over the last 5 years, anyone else I fail to catch up with - invite out to NZ??!!
Anything i've missed? Thanks