Immigration Consultants
Feb 20th 2005, 10:28 pm
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Immigration Consultants
We're about to embark on the long journey of applying for permanent residence in NZ under the SMC and we're considering using an agency (I'm sure you all know the ones-mentioning no names). Does anyone have any anecdotes about the effectiveness of using such agencies, or could anyone recommend one (contact us offline if necessary)? The fees are high so we don't want to commit to such a great expenditure unless we have an extremely high chance of success. Also, we don't own property and I am 37 (my husband is 52) and we wonder whether this will be an obstacle? We don't want to go into this with false expectations, but we really want a better life for our kids. I've seen other threads on this forum that discuss property prices and I appreciate the concerns that people have but the situation here now is that a child in the UK now cannot expect to afford their own place when they're an adult (and that doesn't only mean ownership-social housing is dwindling here, and rents are stupidly high).
We've looked at other threads on this forum (even the negative ones) and found it to be a highly active supportive community, we look forward to your replies.
We've looked at other threads on this forum (even the negative ones) and found it to be a highly active supportive community, we look forward to your replies.
Feb 21st 2005, 9:26 pm
#2
Forum Regular
Joined: Feb 2005
Location: West Midlands, UK
Posts: 60
Re: Immigration Consultants
Originally Posted by Damages
We're about to embark on the long journey of applying for permanent residence in NZ under the SMC and we're considering using an agency (I'm sure you all know the ones-mentioning no names). Does anyone have any anecdotes about the effectiveness of using such agencies, or could anyone recommend one (contact us offline if necessary)? The fees are high so we don't want to commit to such a great expenditure unless we have an extremely high chance of success. Also, we don't own property and I am 37 (my husband is 52) and we wonder whether this will be an obstacle? We don't want to go into this with false expectations, but we really want a better life for our kids. I've seen other threads on this forum that discuss property prices and I appreciate the concerns that people have but the situation here now is that a child in the UK now cannot expect to afford their own place when they're an adult (and that doesn't only mean ownership-social housing is dwindling here, and rents are stupidly high).
We've looked at other threads on this forum (even the negative ones) and found it to be a highly active supportive community, we look forward to your replies.
We've looked at other threads on this forum (even the negative ones) and found it to be a highly active supportive community, we look forward to your replies.
I saved £13,000 by applying for my business visa myself - wasn't hard but took a while to get everything together (certificates, records, business info etc.) - and you'll still need to do that even if you use an agent!
Would recommend you speak to an agent and take advantage of any free consultation etc. Ask their opinion. They will avoid anyone who they think stands a poor chance of success. If they're prepared to take you on then I would say that is a good sign to go and do it yourself!
Alan.
Feb 22nd 2005, 3:01 am
#3
Forum Regular
Joined: Jul 2004
Location: Auckland
Posts: 62
Re: Immigration Consultants
Originally Posted by isv
In my opinion there is absolutely no need to use an agent. You can get a 'good result' doing it yourself. Everything you need to know is published on the NZIS site. Recommend you download the case officer's handbook - thus you can see what they're really looking for.
I saved £13,000 by applying for my business visa myself - wasn't hard but took a while to get everything together (certificates, records, business info etc.) - and you'll still need to do that even if you use an agent!
Would recommend you speak to an agent and take advantage of any free consultation etc. Ask their opinion. They will avoid anyone who they think stands a poor chance of success. If they're prepared to take you on then I would say that is a good sign to go and do it yourself!
Alan.
I saved £13,000 by applying for my business visa myself - wasn't hard but took a while to get everything together (certificates, records, business info etc.) - and you'll still need to do that even if you use an agent!
Would recommend you speak to an agent and take advantage of any free consultation etc. Ask their opinion. They will avoid anyone who they think stands a poor chance of success. If they're prepared to take you on then I would say that is a good sign to go and do it yourself!
Alan.
Absolutely agree. We used an agency in Chester with the parent company in Auckland. No problem with the work they did, but with hindsight we could easily have done it all ourselves and saved a fortune.
John
