[pinkpiggy]

Hi guys

Afraid this is a bit of a long one! We’ve been mulling over our current situation. As some of you know, we have now sold our house and have been given a moving out date of 27 April. From what has been posted recently it seems that it may be quite some time before we are even allocated a case officer (someone has just received a letter saying for applications lodged in October expect to receive a case officer by mid-March and not January as should have been the case). Going on this info, we could be waiting until May possibly even June before we get allocated one.

What we are trying to work out, given this info, is whether it makes more sense to just put our belongings into storage and just up sticks and go to NZ, when we have to leave our house (i.e. end of April early May).

Where would this leave us with our current ITA application? Would we be able to transfer it to NZ or would we have to start the process again?

We know we would need to buy a return ticket as opposed to a one way ticket but are there any other things we need to be aware of? For example, can we send the children to school if we don’t have PR?

Obviously, if we were to take this route, we would be looking for work upon arrival and may then need to apply for a work permit, if we find work quickly. What effect does this have on our PR application?

The other option we are considering is for OH to go out to NZ on a reccie trip and try and line up some interviews while he is there. If he did this and was successful would NZ employees expect to start work immediately or do you think they would be happy for him to come home and sort out his PR which would then be fast tracked.

Any advice or thoughts on how much easier it is to find work when physically in the country or not would be helpful. Obviously this would be quite a costly exercise and we’re trying to weigh up the pros and cons to ensure it would be worthwhile if we went for it.

Just as an after thought, does anyone have any reason to believe the current status with regards to the speed (or lack thereof) of NZIS dealing with ITA’s is likely to improve/speed up in the next couple of months. Obviously the answer to this question may determine what we ultimately decide to do. So it would be useful to have a consensus of opinion either way.

As we said, this was a long one and we thank you in advance for all useful information.

[saabmania2]

hi,
it might well speed up a bit they seem to go a bit slower around xmas so i would expect it to start getting quicker soon.
it might not be a bad idea to up sticks and go i know a few others have done it and been successful but i personally would go for your second option and let OH go on a reccie and find a job, most employers are quite happy to wait a short time this way you haven't got all the hassle of all going, only to find problems down the line (not that i think you are going to have any i read your blog very very comprehensive :) )and it seems like you've done your homework
in fact i'm jealous cos you seem so well organised :D
HTH
paul

[tigerlily]

You can just tell them your new address in NZ when you get there, if you all decide to go. I think you'd be transferred to an office down there, and possible things would move faster for you.

My impression is that employers would prefer not to wait, so if he could head down and be ready to start work immediately (just leaving you with the small job of packing up) his chances would probably be better. But I'm not sure what line of work he's in. If he's some highly in demand computer programmer, they'll probably bend over backwards to make it easy for him and he can return any time he likes to start work. If it's a challange just to get an interview because he hasn't any Kiwi experience, then having an address in country should help some.

Kids would have to pay overseas tuition to attend school until PR comes through, or a work permit I think.

Best of luck with all these hard choices. Wish something about this process was easy.

[willowshouse]

Where would this leave us with our current ITA application? Would we be able to transfer it to NZ or would we have to start the process again?

We know we would need to buy a return ticket as opposed to a one way ticket but are there any other things we need to be aware of? For example, can we send the children to school if we don’t have PR?

Obviously, if we were to take this route, we would be looking for work upon arrival and may then need to apply for a work permit, if we find work quickly. What effect does this have on our PR application?



You wouldn't have to start your ITA again - you would probably just continue it in the UK with a NZ address although I'm sure some people have transferred it.

You would have to pay for schools which cost us $2500 a term in Auckland but we did get a free term initially and I'm sure some others on this forum have had similar. To get free schooling you need a work permit or PR .. a student permit just allows you the right to study here .. but not for free!

If you find a job while over here you tell your case officer (if you have one) or just advise the immigration service (if you don't) and they will 'add' your job to your application which will mean that you will be dealt with straight away and you won't have to have an interview.

It's a call only you can make - there are lots on this forum which have done the same. If you can afford it and you're keen to get here ASAP it is certainly do'able.

Good Luck,
Dawn

[pinkpiggy]

Thanks guys for your replies. :cheers

Best of luck with all these hard choices. Wish something about this process was easy.
Tigerlily: If only. ;)

t's a call only you can make
Dawn: You're absolutely right about this. We just want to make sure that any decision we make is an informed decision.

OH is now busily applying for jobs (not that he wasn't before, he is just now making more of an effort ;)). He is trying to approach companies direct, as opposed to going through agencies, although these are being used when absolutely necessary.