If you are anticipating hiring offshore workers to fill your staff shortages, below is a breakdown of what to prepare for.
Accredited Employer Work Visa [“AEWV”] implementation dates
The key dates are now:
a. 23 May 2022 – employers can apply for accreditation
b. 20 June 2022 – accredited employers can submit a job check
c. 4 July 2022 (unchanged) – migrants can apply for an AEWV, where the employer is accredited, and a job check has been completed.
How much will it cost the Employer?
You will pay a fee based on the level of accreditation you get and how many migrants you hire.
- Standard accreditation – up to 5 migrants at any one time is NZD $740.00.
- High-volume accreditation – 6 or more migrants at any one time is NZD $1,220.00.
- Upgrade fee for employers who want to upgrade from standard to high-volume accreditation is NZD $480.
- Employers wanting to place migrants with controlling third parties is NZD $3,870.00.
- Franchisees – NZD $1,980.00.
- Reconsideration of declined employer accreditation application is NZD $240.00.
Employers accredited under the Talent (Accredited Employer) scheme will have the fee for their initial AEWV accreditation waived, as long as their accreditation has 6 months from 23 May 2022 until it expires. The Talent (Accredited Employer) scheme is being phased out and has closed to new applications.
Median Wage Increase
The median wage will increase from $27.00 to $27.76 an hour on 4 July 2022, in line with when the AEWV opens to applications.
Employers who submit a job check in advance of 4 July 2022 should use the new median wage figure, as all visa applications will be made on or after this date.
What does this mean for the AEWV scheme?
Changes have been made to streamline the accreditation and job check steps.
- High-volume accreditation no longer includes a requirement that jobs must pay at least 10% above minimum wage or be covered by a collective agreement, as the new median wage threshold will apply across the board.
- This means high-volume accreditation now has the same requirements as standard accreditation. Employers must still apply for high-volume accreditation and pay a higher fee if they want to employ more than 5 workers on AEWVs at one time.
- Employers can upgrade from standard to high-volume accreditation at any point during their accreditation period, for a fee. This fee reflects the additional risk assurance activities that INZ may have to undertake, as the impact of non-compliance increases with the greater number of migrants employed by a business. Further requirements for high-volume employers may be considered in the future.
- Additional accreditation requirements remain for employers who are franchisees or who place AEWV holders with controlling third parties – but there is now no limit on the number of AEWV holders these employers can employ at one time.
- At the job check stage, the labour market test is no longer regionalised. All employers need to advertise their vacancies unless the role is paid at least twice the median wage.
- There will be more flexibility in how INZ calculates whether a migrant meets the median wage threshold.
Contact us for further information on +64 0274214153 or email Admin@a2nz-immigration.com