From WHV to Work Permit
 

Hi

Has anyone had experience of arriving on a work holiday visa then later converting it to a temporary work permit?

I am part-way through my WHV and my current employer has offered me a one year contract... so I am preparing to apply for a work permit.

This quote on the website about not being in employment when I apply has got me wondering though,
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...y/howdoiapply/

When you can apply
You can apply for a work visa or permit when you are:
- living outside New Zealand and you want to travel here, or
- already in New Zealand but you are not employed.


Will I have to go through the procedure of resigning for the day I go to the immigration office?

Hope someone who has done this already can clarify... thanks in advance.

Re: From WHV to Work Permit
 

How hard was to find a job while on WHV because as im going in a few months i would be interested to know?

Re: From WHV to Work Permit
 

It was no problem for IT work.

The WHV for UK citizens lets you work for the same employer in NZ for the full 12 months if you want (unlike the OZ 6 month limit).

Re: From WHV to Work Permit
 

Good day.

Haven't done this route myself, but can offer the following thoughts.

When applying for a work permit, your employer has to show that they have made some effort in trying to recurit a Kiwi and immigration has to be satisfied that you are not taking a job away from a NZ resident.

So if you are already working, then strictly speaking, your employer will have to advertise the job he is offering you and go through the whole recruitment process.

I had a simalar stituation when my work permit ran out and I had to apply to renew it. NZIS told me to stop working immediatly and that my employer had to readvertise my job and then I had to go through the application process again. As you can imagine this completely freaked me and my employer out. So my employer wrote a strong letter to NZIS, explaining why they were not prepared to go through another recruitment process, using cost as the main arguement. I had a new work permit issued within 48hrs.

Moral of the story is. NZIS have a set of rules which they will take great delight in trying to enforce. However your employer maybe able to put together a case that may allow these rules to be "bent".

Re: From WHV to Work Permit
 

Thanks for the thoughts, that's the kind of problem I was expecting but I went in this morning and got assigned a really nice case officer... no problems at all.