Advice please
 

Hi all,I'm thinking of moving to New Zealand in the next couple of months,probably to Canterbury/Christchurch area as I'm a truck driver and that's the only area with truck driver on the skills shortage list,was going to come over and hopefully find a job as getting one from the UK seems a bit unrealistic,am I right in thinking that as truck driving is on the Canterbury skills shortage list that if I get a truck driving job it should be relatively straight forward to get a work permit??,was also going to rent a room to start with and buy a cheap car to get me around,is car insurance still not compulsory?? I have been to NZ a couple of times before,although that was in the North island up near Auckland, how different is the South island??
Many thanks in advance for any help and advice

Michael

Re: Advice please
 

Yes, if you manage to get a written job offer as a truckie in that area of the country you can use that job offer to apply for an Essential Skills Temporary Work Visa. The duration of the visa should match the job offer period, or if the job offer is permanent the visa duration may be awarded for the maximum term available on that type of visa which could be up to 5 years. Obviously there's conditions that you and the company offering the job must meet.
Getting a job offer will be more straightforward being here in person that's for sure and it also demonstrates you are serious about the move. A truckie must have the appropriate class of driving license and sufficient experience. You should be able to drive on your UK license for up to the first 12 months. You'll need to apply for an NZ license within that first year, which may require you to sit a theory test which you must pass in order to get the license and continue to drive.....and if you don't get the NZ license it means you'll not be able to drive after 12 months and causes a cascade effect....no license...no job.....no visa.....no pressure!

Renting a room initially is a good idea. Somewhere to live will be your highest weekly cost and managing those costs early will allow you some breathing space to determine cost of living here which is higher than in the UK. There are many cheap used cars and the cost of keeping a car on the road is a lot cheaper than in the UK.
Car insurance isn't compulsory, BUT you'd be strongly advised to take it out. Everyone is covered for personal injury by the ACC where you contribute from income, but any costs for repairs or loss of a vehicle through theft/damage - irrespective of fault is not so you need to be sure of the risks for the non-insured.
Car insurance is around half the price of the UK and in my opinion a no brainer for that piece of mind.
South Island is beautiful. I've lived all my 5.5 years here in the North Island and have travelled around the South Island a few times. Way less people and traffic. Mountains, bush and oceans galore. There's some pretty remote places out there that's for sure but it is stunning. Snow during the winter but really settled long dry/hot summers.

Re: Advice please
 

Many thanks for the advice, nice to have a bit of clarification!

Re: Advice please
 

If I wanted to get a truck driving job in a region where the job isn't on any of the skills shortage lists, would I be able to get a work permit still??

Re: Advice please
 

Hi Mate, I think that the Canterbury skills list is your only way in with your job as the pay won't meet the threshold for other visas (accredited employer talent for example is 55k), there is articles abound blaming low pay for the current shortage of drivers.

Re: Advice please
 

Thanks, but meant would I be able to get a work permit if I got a truck driving job somewhere other than the Canterbury region on New Zealand??

Many thanks

Re: Advice please
 

Only if the company could prove to New Zealand Immigration and the Dept of Labour there was no NZ resident or citizen that could take up that vacancy.

An NZ Immigration accredited company could though offer you a job without having to go through that check.

Fulton Hogan for instance.

Re: Advice please
 

For donkey's years hgv truck driver was on the immediate shortage list which meant any company could offer an overseas person a job. It is what kept the industry churning really and some truck drivers spent many many years here on renewable temporary work permits mostly in forestry and the like.

As truck driving is not seen as 'skilled' they were kinda trapped with that unless they could get to drive tankers and earn the needed $55K pa for a WTR visa.

Then NZ in its wisdom decided that it was NZers that should be doing those jobs and took the occupation off the immediate shortage list. It happened despite the industry itself stating they were against the move and it would cause labour shortages.

Roll on a year or so and exactly that has happened. NZers for the most part don't want the trucking jobs which pay the usual trucking rate they always have. They don't want the shift work or the long hours on sometimes difficult roads, so now there is a labour shortage & some companies are finding themselves under duress. Just like the pip fruit growers , vineyards and farmers , they rely on the overseas labour.

Re: Advice please
 

I can't answer your question re truck driving but the difference between the North and the south Island is the same as Scotland to the south of England. It's very cold in winter, houses are not centrally heated or well insulated. Great scenery down south but it's more earthquake prone. I would guess there are more job opportunities in the north for your line of business. You don't say whether you're single or have family. Car insurance not yet compulsory.

Re: Advice please
 

As has been said before, car insurance is not compulsory but I would strongly recommend it. I have been involved in two collisions during the eight years that I have lived here - one was my fault for not paying enough attention and driving in to the back of a car where the old lady driver had stopped at a pelican crossing that nobody was crossing, the other was not where a 25 year old driver drove into the back of my car on the motorway - he did not have insurance and I was relieved that I did not have to try and recover the repair costs from him myself.

The South Island is as different from the Auckland area as Wales and Scotland are from the South of England, in many respects - Population Density, multiculturalism, weather, scenery, business and employment opportunities.

Also bear in mind that most things in this country are quite new and whole areas can change in the blink of an eye. The Auckland that we know now is a different place to the one from twenty years ago. You didn't mention when you visited before but it is entirely possible that the North Island now is a different place to the one you would be comparing it with in your memory. That is not a bad thing but it makes the validity of any comparisons more difficult.

Some people love the scenery weather and low population of the South Island - we can say that for sure.