JAJ

It is not "just a formality".

And there are some significant differences in rights, over the long term.

sr71

About the only rights would be voting, getting a passport and some high-security clearance roles in government agencies or defense positions.

Unless a Kiwi had significant adverse problems like a serious criminal record then there is no reason why they should not get PR and subsequently citizenship.

Annabel Candy

Thanks so much for all your replies and input.

Does anyone know what would happen with Kiwi kids who want to study at University in Australia? Would they be treated any differently than Aussie kids?

sr71

No, they pay domestic tuition fees, the same as Aussie kids, but you can't get student loans you have to pay up front.

http://www.goingtouni.gov.au/

Watt Dabney

I am at an Oz uni on a Kiwi passport, it is correct you pay domestic fees but no student loan you pay as you go at the beginning of each semester. You do qualify for the commonwealth supported places which are discounted. For my subject there are a lot of scholarships you can apply for but I have found for most of those you need to be a Oz citizen too.

stewmac

New Zealand- Back Door -Sheep ...i think we've heard all we need to know thanks

JAJ

A lot more than that, you have social benefits, citizenship for Australia born children, ability to sponsor relatives to Australia, employment for the Federal Government, and so on.


Your statement is absolutely wrong and if you are going to try to suggest otherwise you may wish to provide some references to the Migration Act and Regulations to support your case.

fish.01

Depends whether single/married/kids, lifestyle, preferred weather, pursuit of indoor/outdoor activities etc. Looks like parochial small town views are alive down south as well

sr71

What I'm trying to say is it doesn't really matter unless you want those specific things and it is not as important as other immigrants. So you can't get PR - what happens, you can still live and work in Australia indefinitely whereas that would be the end of the line for someone from the UK.

If anything in the future it will become easier for Kiwis, domestic travel between the two countries is coming and I suspect that visas will be aligned between the NZ.Australia, with the same social security restrictions.

JAJ

Correct ... but the point still remains that there is no "automatic" PR for those New Zealanders who do want it.

For a variety of reasons, not least immigration controls, I'll believe that when I see it.

sr71

I can't see how they will do it personally, I think it's a given that flights between NZ and Australia will get reclassified as domestic. Both the PM's have committed to that and there has been mention made of collocating immigration officers. (AKL already has an Aus immigration contingent apparently)

So when a person arrives from the US into Auckland, they will clear both NZ & Australian immigration. And similarly for people arriving into Australia.

It will be interesting to see how it will work and I can't see a simple system with 2 sets of visa and immigration rules in place. There has to be some alignment otherwise it will be expensive and confusing.

e.g UK people arriving in NZ get 6 months on entry, but only 3 on entry to Australia. So if they have already spent 5 months in NZ how do they get extra time when flying to Australia on a domestic flight? Will they become overstayers etc?

And note they are talking about a 'common border'

http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-...0318-91gi.html

JAJ

Once again - it's all talk!.

It will take a lot for Australia to entrust its border security to New Zealand, which is what fully domestic travel would entail.

Expect to see more targeted measures instead These could include provisions allowing people to "pre-clear" Australian customs and immigration at New Zealand airports, much like the U.S. Immigration facilities at Canadian airports. Then the flight could arrive at an Australian domestic terminal.

BandS

I love Waiheke Island. We went there last year and I cant wait to go there again.

Sharon

Justcol

thats quite an interesting debate, we are currently living in nz with PR and are just starting
to think about the possibilty of moving to oz in a few years when we get nz citizenship.
We are both currently in skill shortage proffessions here in nz but for me that is about to change.
If my knowledge is correct our proffessions dont matter if we decide to make the move
to oz as long as we have nz citizenship.
I think as has been said it will effect our eligabilty for certain benefits (not that we plan to claim any)
but these are areas we must investigate further before a real decision can be made.

jmh

Yes I love Waiheke Island too. I have family there. It is VERY laid back, but at least there is a good ferry which will take you into the centre of Auckland for a burst of the rat race every now and again!