Work Permits

[Alison]

Hi Guys

I am calling on your fount of knowledge to give me advice for my friend, she and her hubbie and young daughter are already over here with PR but there 21 year old son back in the UK has now decided he would like to come out and try NZ to see if he likes it here.

So my question is what is the best way for him to apply to come across. Am I right in thinking that to get a general work visa he would need to have a job offer in hand? And with a WHV he would not need a job offer beforehand? I guess with a WHV he could come on over and then look for a job with no delays, but if he decided he liked it here would he be in the position to be able to apply for work permit or PR from his WHV, or to get PR would he be have to have his parents sponsor him? And if so how long do they have to have been in NZ to be able to do so? (They have been here 1 year so far)

He has trained and worked as a chef (not sure on what exact experience he has)

Amazes me that the INZ site still confuses me

[MotherBear]

Hi Alison,

Originally Posted by Alison

Amazes me that the INZ site still confuses me

I really don't think you're alone there. I've been at this immigration lark for a few years now and still don't understand half of it. A lot of the information dolled out can be very ambiguous and deciding which bits suit your own particular circumstances can be quite tricky.

Your friend's son would need a job offer to apply for a WP. In case you haven't read up on it, here's a couple of links about the WP.

Quick check
Requirements for a WP

He could easily get into NZ with a WHV (12 or 23 months) which would give him the chance to look for work and check out opportunities in NZ. He's only allowed to work for part of the time but it might be enough to get him a suitable job that would enable him to apply for a WP. Some people do the same thing on a Visit Visa but, of course, he wouldn't be able to work on that until he'd got his job offer and applied for a WP. I think it's easy enough to swap from a VV or a WHV to a WP and then to PR, if the circumstances are right i.e. he has the right quals and work experience. If he can manage to get some NZ work experience under his belt it would certainly help his cause if he wants to proceed to applying for PR.

His parents would have to live in NZ for 3 years on PR before they could sponsor him to join them. Even then, he will need to have a job offer under his belt which meets the minimum level of income.

[nickydwuk]

This looks like the way my eldest son could come over when we arrive. He has no qualifications and lives alone. With a WHV does he need a job first or can he come over and then get a job? Can it be any job? As I said he is not qualified in anything except fork lift truck driving and manual labour.

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by nickydwuk

With a WHV does he need a job first or can he come over and then get a job? Can it be any job?

With a WHV it can be any casual work, even fruit picking and that sort of thing. It's really meant as a way of allowing young tourists to help fund their holiday. Your son wouldn't need a job prior to arriving in NZ - he can find one after he arrives but can only work for part of the duration of the WHV, not the whole time.