inimd

Hello,
I know that it is possible to submit an EOI without a job offer as long as I have above the score of 100.

But even if I am selected and invited to apply, and assuming all goes well, it doesn't mean I will get a Permanent residence visa but I could get a 6 months temporary visa, correct? (Because I don't have a job offer)

I just wanted to know how other people in this forum have fared when they applied without a job offer.
Did most people get a permanent residence visa or the 6 months visa? (at the end of the process)


Thanks.

Persephone

Hi Inimd,

Once you have sent back your ITA without a job offer then you will have an interview with NZIS [over the phone] and they should give you one of 2 visas:

1. Permanent residence. You have 6m to send your passport in and get the visas in it and then one year from that date to enter NZ. So effectively one and a half years from PR being granted.

or

2. Work to Residence. You have 3m to get the visas in your passport then you must enter NZ within 3m. So you only have 6m from WTR being granted to get over there. Then once you arrive in NZ you are given a 9m work visa and so have to find suitable employment within 9months

I was granted PR without a job offer and so have others so that is obviously not necessarily the main factor they use when deciding which visa to give. It was a condition on my ITA that I had to gain professional registration before sending it back in order to be granted PR but other than that I don't know how they decide The interview is meant to determine how much research and how prepared you are for life in NZ, you don't have one if you have a job offer.

Hope this helps. Good luck

Sue

inimd

Thanks for the reply.

So if one has a job offer, and assuming all goes well, how long is the PR valid for?

Also, can you share how people have received a job offer in NZ? What sites are helpful?

Persephone

Hi
I assume you mean that if you arrive in NZ with a job offer then how long can you stay?
If granted PR: when you first enter NZ you have a residence permit stamped in your passport which allows you to stay indefinitely but expires once you leave the country. You are also given a 2 year returning residents visa [RRV]which allows you to leave and reenter NZ as a resident. After 2 years this needs renewing and if you fulfill certain conditions it will be changed for an indefinite RRV. So the answer is permanently as long as you either don't leave NZ or make sure you renew your RRV!

As far as looking for a job is concerned then hopefully others will be able to help with some sites, I think there is one called "seek" try seek.co.nz???
I used specific websites for my profession and I looked in the yellow pages and just sent a CV to all the potential employers in the area I wanted to move to and was successful. My job is on the skills shortage list though.

All the best
Sue

inimd

Hi Sue,
Thanks for your helpful reply.

One more question -- If one is granted PR, what kind of visa is stamped on the passport? Does the visa say "Immigrant Visa" or something similar and you said the visa is valid for only 1 year, so the person needs to enter NZ within that 1 year, correct?

Persephone

Hi
If you are granted PR then you get 2 visa stickers in your passport if not in NZ. One is a "residence visa" and the other is a 2year "returning resident's visa".

The residency visa allows you to travel to NZ where you will have a residence permit stamped in your passport on entry. The permit is the one that allows you to stay and work there and is only given once in NZ.
Once placed in your passport the residence visa is only valid for one year so yes you do need to enter NZ within a year of the date on the visa.

If you send the passport in just before the 6m is up and then travel a year later then you have nearly 18m from PR being granted to get to NZ. Though if they give you WTR then it's only 6m from the decision being made
Sue

DawnW

You can have Permanent Residency without jobs- we have! It takes a while to process though. Our EOI went in in April 2007 and we didn't get our visas until Sept 2008. We are now living in Auckland, looking for work.
It's sometimes easier to be here to get work and that gave us lots of time to sell our house and prepare everyhting etc.
Good luck.
Dawn

DGH

Hi, when you have your interview over the phone, what kind of things do they ask? Just want to prepare as we are submitting an application without a job offer.