HotSpot

I have done masters and have the job offer from NZ company. My designation /occupation falls under Long Term Skills Shortage category. I had planned to file my application for "Work Permit" (Just completed filling Application to Work in New Zealand NZIS 1015 form) before I found this thread:
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=545863

Now I am confused about this PR thing and work permit thing.. Still confused whether I am doing the right thing to go for PR/ work permit .. what is the difference between these two at this stage of my application. Please shed some light before i get into trouble.

I have already acquired medical certificate (by mistake) as it is only valid for three months (I read it in some forum post) and i havent even submitted my application. I assume I had to go for it once I had received the EOI Acceptance again.. please help before i make any wrong move!

getmethere

Hi

I will try to help but we are not going that route (as we don't have job offer) so someone else might be better qualified to help you.

From my understanding, with a job offer, you will almost certainly be picked from the pool (if you get over 100 points with the job offer). They also process applications for PR much quicker if you have a job offer (I understand 3-4 months is the norm to get your application processed with a job offer). So, if I were you, I would go for PR straight away if you quailfy for it because then you will arrive in NZ as permanent residents.

Once your EOI is accepted, you then have to wait for decision succesful and after that you will receive your ITA. Only then do you need to go for meds.

Soppydot4

Hi

I was informed by Immigration that you could have your medical extended by another 3 months by the Dr who did it.

Nic

Water Lily

Don't exactly know all the details, but if I understood it right the main differences are that a work permit has a limit of (I think) 2 years and then you would have to renew it or apply for PR if you wanted to stay in the country.

WTR is normally given to people who have to prove they can do the job they have claimed points for before they are granted PR. They enter the country on this visa and after working in their profession for a certain amount of time they can then apply for PR.

I agree with getmethere that with a job offer, well basically you're laughing! You can apply for PR straightaway, lucky you!

You can submit your EOI online, with a job offer and/or (not 100% sure about this) 140 points and above, it'll be selected from the pool straightaway. The job offer will also mean they'll give your application priority. Their website says you should expect to receive your ITA within 10 days. So if you only had your medical tests done recently, you still have plenty of time as they're valid for 3 months. So basically you would have another 2 months or so to collect all the other necessary paperwork and then you could return the ITA and expect to hear back from them pretty quickly!

If you haven't yet done so, apply for your police certificate now. Also get copies of your qualification(s), work references if applicable, proof of relationship if applicable, and a copy of your full birth certificate. I think that's about it.

Good luck with it all, hope all this makes sense! If you still have queries don't be afraid to ask, we've all been there and we've all had lots of help from all the lovely people on these boards so someone will always come to the rescue

HotSpot

Thanks for such a quick response you all guys.. I was doing some research on the internet until i found this..
source: http://www.shelteroffshore.com/index...n_new_zealand/

Please share your opinion on this one.. as i am very much confused to select one of the two options.. "General Work" and "Work to Residence" Which one would be better for me pls suggest........

nena11

Hi, you should be able to extend the date on your medical certificates, below are the instructions sent to me by INZ when I asked for an extension on my ITA,


I can advise that it is possible to have the valid period of your medical reports extended. You will simply need to ask your panel doctor to re date the medical reports (by crossing out the old date and putting the current days date). This will then extend the valid period of the medical by 3 months from the new date the doctor has written. I can confirm that the panel doctors are in the position to do this for you.

... hope this helps



As for the visa type I don't think I can be of much help, but I guess it will all depend on what your intentions are long term, i.e. planning to move there permanently or not

Having a job offer would definitively speed up the PR process if you choose this path and if you do I would also advise you get your qualifications assessed soon as this can be a lengthly process some times, not sure if this is needed for WTR visa

Water Lily

Well I'm confused by this statement "Work to Residence Visas are by far the best type of visa that you can get if you want to emigrate permanently and start a new life".

They might be better than a work visa but surely they can't be better than getting PR straight off?

With a WTR visa you have to stay in employment for a certain amount of time before you can apply for PR. I'm not sure if it's 2 years as they say, but if it is so, then you are 2 years behind! I mean, if you can apply for PR straight away, seeing that you have a job offer, why go for the slower option? Does that make sense?

Water Lily

These pages might help you better, they are from the immigration service website

http://www.immigration.govt.nz/nzopp...ngnzresidence/

Then click on the links for the different options

Want2Move

When I saw that where it says "Work to Residence Visas are by far the best type of visa ..." That made me laugh. Whoever wrote that line, that person does not know that NZ gives PR visa without a job offer while you are outside of NZ for qualified people. It is like telling a person who is eligible for a citizenship, a PR is better way to go. What a joke.

In my opinion, citizenship is better than PR, PR is better than WTR, WTR is better than Work Visa, Work Visa is better than Tourist Visa and Tourist Visa is better than No Visa.

If you get WTR, you are free to work to any employer in NZ in the profession you claimed points for and you can apply for PR after 3 months of work. But it looks like you are qualified for PR and that is the way to go.

Water Lily

Hahahaha, excellent!! Simple and to the point, love it! Why didn't I think of that myself!

How's the IELTS preparation coming along? Many regards to you and your lovely wife

HotSpot

well.. WTR is what my employer thinks your can say.. has advised me. The reason being that it will get me quick into NZ i reckon if i go for WTR track. For PR i guess i ll have to file an EOI and that might take a lil longer. So i am left with the options WTR or General Work. WTR is preferred to General WOrk as per my understanding.. So do you think PR can take same as long as WTR can.

iwannagonow

I have recently been in touch with Tonix ( NZ nursing agency) & the lady there told me that a work visa usually takes 4-8wks & a PR usually takes 4-12wks.

We were thinking of going for a 2yr work visa then appling for PR once we were settled (to get us over there quicker).....however, for the sake of a few weeks we are now going straight for PR. Also we only then have the hassle of all the application forms & various paperwork once - which can only be a good thing!

I'm sure with your job offer the whole process will be much quicker!

Good luck with whatever you decide x

Want2Move

Thanks Water Lily.

IELTS preparation is coming ok, but she needs to focus more and spend a little more time everyday. She had a plan to take it on July 11th, but we had to postpone because she was not ready for it. Hopefully, she will take it on July 26. I would like to submit my EOI soon, but the IELTS is stopping us.

Many regards to you and your husband and wish you all the best with your ITA decision soon.

Want2Move

I feel like I need to clarify something. When I said you are eligible to work for any employer in NZ and eligible to apply for PR after 3 months of work when you go there with WTR, I was talking about the ones who applied for direct PR under skilled migrant category without a job offer. Some of the people in this forum have given WTR instead of PR because their occupation needed to be registered or they needed to get some certification before they can start working on their profession.

I went through the link above provided by Water Lily and learned few things. In your case, it is 2 years wait until you can apply PR and that route is also called WTR. I did not know there are two different WTRs. I wish they had given different names for them.

The bottomline is, I do not know much about NZ immigration even though I said something in my earlier post like I know everything about it. Please consult with experts like BEVS here and others and act accordingly. Wish you all the best.

HotSpot

What if I am applying under Skilled migrant category? Would i still select "Work to residence" in my application?