People Experiences with Emigration Consultants

Moorf

We have recently started dicussions with several consultants who "guarantee" to give you the best chance into NZ etc.

Are there any companies that we should be wary of? Anyone want to share experiences ? Everywhere I look there are glowing reports - surely there are some much better, honest and reliable (cheaper even?!"). Aren't there websites with "disaster" stories to balance out the realism?!

I appreciate no commercial postings are allowed but can we have some personal experiences with named co.'s? Hmmm

Moorf

richsadams · Posted: Thu Mar 11, 2004 5:03 am Post subject: Consultants

Moorf,

We are using Malcolm Pacific Limited and have had good success so far. The company is run by a former NZ Minister of Immigration and they know their way around. Our interview was very thorough and gave us a great amount of confidence in their abilities.

We were intending on going in under a LTBV (Long Term Business Visa). As we were going to invest a good deal of money and the various laws and regulations can get complicated, it led us to a consulting firm. Once they understood our intentions they steered us toward the SMC (Skilled Migrant Category) as you can gain a PRV (Permanent Residence Visa) that way and not have to deal with the NZIS (hopefully you know who THAT is! bobby

) down the road as you would with a LTBV.

If they take your case they guarantee they will get you residence or your money back. Clapping

So you have to have a pretty solid ability to gain residence or they won't waste your time. If you are turned down by the NZIS for some reason, they will appeal, etc. at no extra cost to you. Mind you...it's not cheap! I am told their fees are among the highest, however, we've also found that they've come through on all of their commitments. We have an offer of employment on the POL list and have our EOI in. As our EOI may or may not be pulled this first three months (our points are just under the current passmark), they are preparing Work Visas for us which will allow us to immigrate and meet our employment commitment.

That said, could we have done it on our own? Maybe...probably, but there are so many variables and "what if's" Nutcase

that we chose not to risk the mistakes. We also felt confident that their presentation of our case to the NZIS would be exactly as they would like it. Perhaps no extra points, but no worries either.

So why did we use a consultant? To gain a better understanding of the business climate, laws, etc. and to get an honest opinon about our abilities to meet all of the requiements. Also, we wanted to ensure we'd get it right the first time; that we were getting all of the points due us and not have to reapply because we didn't understand something. We wanted to have some confidence up front that we were going to be able to make our dreams come true. Wink

Would I recommend a consultant to everyone? No. Some people's cases are straight-forward and easy to understand...and some people's attention to detail are far better than mine! Laughing

But I would recommend talking to a couple of the consultants first. It may save some time and money in the long run and you can generally find out if you have a chance or not.

Malcolm Pacific and many others can be found on the internet. If any of them make it sound easy, beware...it isn't. It's time consuming and can be complicated. But don't lose hope, it can be done! Yes

We're now preparing to move by the end of May (we started our "journey" in October Eek

) and begin our new life. Hope to see you there soon! Nice One

susanlin · Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2004 7:53 am Post subject:

hi - thought i might give you my opinion on emigration consultants...I haven't used one and have done everything myself from applying for a WTR visa, visas for my children and husband to submitting the EOI and I have just been selected from the pool so must have done something right! I wasn't prepared to pay upto £2000 to a consultant for something I could do very easily myself. Yes, it is very time consuming and you have to be very careful, ensuring you read and understand everything but I can honestly say it isn't difficult - not rocket science! Admittedly my case was quite straightforward - work visas and EOI - may be a bit more complicated for business visas. I have a cynical view of emigration consultants... of course I know some are excellent but don't they charge a fortune! think what you could do with that money!! Do your research thoroughly before commiting to a consultant - read all the NZIS forms and requirements with attention to the finest details before deciding - you may come to the conclusion that you can do it yourself...good luck!

Tara Sage · Posted: Wed Mar 17, 2004 9:11 am Post subject: Consultants?

We have been looking at getting someone to handle our paperwork for us lazy I know!

Can anyone recommend a consultant, or advise us against bad ones?

How about Progressive Immigration?

Any advise greatfully received. Nutcase

hede · Posted: Wed Mar 17, 2004 8:08 pm Post subject:

Hi!
We have recently signed a contract with Protea Pacific. They seem to be very professional and so far they have answered all our e-mails within 24 hours , they are very helpful and have given us a lot of good advise. We are not going to apply for residency now. He gave us the advise to come to NZ, get a job and then he will help us to get a work permit. That will last for 2-3 years and during that time the pass mark will probably drop and he will tell us when it's the right time for us to apply for residency.

Of course, it's expensive but for us it's worth it. We come from Sweden and even though we understand the context of the information we want to be sure that we don't do anything wrong, that's why we have signed with a consultant.

Good luck!

hede

craigstacey · Posted: Tue Mar 30, 2004 7:11 am Post subject:

Hi
Like hede we're with Protea Pacific. Have found them to be very professional and friendly with e-mails too!
I guess we could've done it ourselves but they're sorting out my Dad's application too, he's 79 and really didn't want the hassle. Their advice has proven very good so far, just waiting on NZIS to get moving now before we can!! Razz

Cheers

captainxmas · Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2004 11:29 am Post subject: Agency Discussion

Hi Everyone,

What about job related agencies? My wife's a RMN and we have had some positive chats with Hudson Pacific. They offer plenty of assistance and make their money from the client at the other end.

I don' mind a little guidance on the paperwork, but it doesn't seem that hard to convince me to spend a couple of grand to let someone else do it.

John Miller · Posted: Sat Jul 17, 2004 9:52 am Post subject: