WhiteRees

Hi All – we thought we would try and introduce ourselves properly! Also update you on where we are at with our application so far – it may help those earlier in the process and hopefully those that are further along from us will able to shed some light on the future weeks/months. We don’t have job offers and have applied for skilled migrant visa
We submitted our EOI late January 2014, and we had worked out we had 140 points, although we found the advice for my partners qualification scoring a little confusing and annoyingly the link on the NZ website didn’t work at the time. Our EOI was pulled 5th Feb, and on 21 Feb we received via email our ITA (invitation to apply letter). We needed the full 4 months to submit our application.
We found the cheapest place to get our medical was in Manchester, and the service we had was fantastic. We found that if you phoned a few places up most were willing to price match locally but not nationally. So we tied in the medical with a mini break. The medical took a lot less time than we initially had thought – if anyone wants details of who we went with then send me a message and i will let you know costs and how long it took!
We put our qualifications in for NZQA. We would recommend doing this first as you do have to post it off to NZ. We fast tracked our applications – due to time issues – and unfortunately our package got stopped by NZ customs! It was delayed by about 3 days. From the day we gave our applications to the courier in the UK to the day we received it back from NZ was less than 4 weeks.
The UK police check came back after just 2 weeks.
I did have to renew my passport as it expired next year – which took ages to come back. Turns out there was a passport crisis on at the time. I hadn’t even thought about my passport! So worth bearing in mind.

I would advise reading the guidance on how to submit your application – as they request it in a certain order and don’t want it in polly pockets etc. We ended up putting it together and then getting family to go through it and see whether they thought we had got everything on the checklist.
As we are not married we submitted loads of relationship evidence. Our evidence included the following: holiday invoices; photographs; wedding invitations; letters from both sets of parents; mortgage statements; paid bills and electoral register information. We felt that best to give more information than less!

So... now our application has been submitted and it looks like it has been accepted. Although the online services doesn’t give too much information – unless we are missing something?!
We don’t seem to have received a letter from NZ immigration regarding our application – so awaiting the letter as apparently it contains more information on waiting times?

So ... next steps... will I as main applicant have to have an interview with NZ immigration in London (or is this over the telephone?).
Anyone else – without job offer – able to provide an update on the next steps and approximate time scales? Is it unrealistic to hope that would hear back by end of September?

Toodles23

Hi,

We submitted our SMC application without a job offer in August 2012, we were asked to provide some additional info and my partner's medical was referred but we didn't get an interview until June 2013. Hopefully yours will be quicker.

The interview was done over the phone.

Good luck!

Persephone

Congratulations, hope you hear back very soon

You get an interview over the phone, not in person and it's not too difficult. Just do some research on here as to the typical questions that get asked.

Just for others reading this, you still need to submit the same relationship evidence even if you are married. NZIS want to see that you're living together, a marriage cert doesn't prove that!

ellenarosemary

A marriage certificate isnt enough, you need photographs of you together plus any with children (if you have any), holiday bookings, bills e.g. telephone, electric etc that have joint names, plus any joint bank statements.

My husband and I had at the time been married over 11 years and had 3 children, and we still had to provide all the above.

RedDragon2008

I wonder if recording the arguments during completing the forms will suffice

ellenarosemary

Probably not, as we would have to prove it was us on the tape!!!

kiwi wanna be

I didn't provide photos etc, just bills in joint names, joint bank account statements and joint tenancy agreement etc (but we did use a migration consultant, so not sure if this makes a difference)

moving2NZ2013

husband got job with accredited employer.
medicals.police checks ect done 14th april.
husbands app submitted 28th may sent back unapproved as needed additional police check from home country.
Resubmitted 8th June.Visa granted 11th June.
Mine and kids Partnership based and visitor visa submitted 20th June approved 3 days later!
fly out 20th august

moving2NZ2013

sounds like you submitted enough evidence or your relationship
when ours wasn't accepted it was sent back within a few days.

you can track on ttvisa online with your passport number. should say application lodged.

WhiteRees

Hello All - a further update... sice my last post things got a little hectic. I ended up applying for a job in New Zealand and I was successful. I received an email on friday last week from my immigration officer (who has been absolutely fantastic) and we sent off our migrant levy fee (£320) on monday along with documents relating to job offer etc.
So .. fingers crossed that our passports come back soon. We are leaving the UK in December 2014! so not long left!

The place where we had medical was Medmigration, Bridgewater Hospital in Manchester and was £300 - the prices we had in the west midlands were over £400! Manchester worked out to be the cheapest by far and they were very efficient.

Persephone

Congratulations WhiteRees

Great news on getting the job. Now to get organised for the move!

WhiteRees

Another update! Email from immigration NZ - our passports will arrive back Friday!

That was a lot quicker than I thought - as I only sent off migrant levy and further forms last monday!

Fly out on 7th December! We are going to Wellington!

It doesnt feel real yet... have a feeling it will suddenly hit me what we are doing!

WhiteRees

Also - we are shipping everything ourselves. We had a crate maid with waterproof lining depth 1.6m X 2m high X 2.4m wide cost £275
We hired a huge van for a weekend and moved everything!

Just sorting through clothes now!

... will wait and see how easy it is the other end!

WhiteRees

*made!

Its been a long weekend!

#exhausted

dougaldon

Hello can enyone help!. I have a job offer and I need to get medicals/X ray's done in the UK, I live in yorkshire and am looking for a hospital/clinic to do all in one go.
I also need info on what medical my wife needs and also does she need a breast scan as she is over 45, I am going out on a work to residence visa