07/03/08 - The new rules spelt out for Immigration Advisers

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Friday 7 March 2008

The professional standards and code of conduct that Immigration Advisers will have to meet in order to get and keep a licence have been released today, said the Immigration Minister Clayton Cosgrove. Under a new law, anyone who provides advice about New Zealand immigration matters will have to be licensed (unless exempt).

Today’s release of the code and industry competency standards means that Advisers now know exactly what will be expected of them prior to applying for a license from 4 May 2008. Mr Cosgrove said licensing brings clear benefits for migrants, their communities and honest, ethical Immigration Advisers who want their professionalism recognised.“Before the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act was passed, anyone could call themselves an Adviser, whether or not they were competent to give immigration advice. The actions of a few shonky operators have seriously disadvantaged some migrants, as well as damaged the reputations of legitimate Advisers. For those few, the writing is on the wall.

”“Licensing means that people who wish to provide immigration advice will have to prove their expertise by meeting competency standards. Licensed Advisers will also have to adhere to a code of conduct, which will increase industry-wide professionalism and ethical behaviour.”

Mr Cosgrove also said that the new law provides for stiff penalties for fraudulent or unlicensed Advisers.“Licensed Advisers who breach the code of conduct can have their licence revoked or be fined up to $10,000. Unlicensed people who are caught providing immigration advice can be sentenced to 7 years in prison, a fine of up to $100,000, or both.“

Migrants are making a big commitment when they choose to come to New Zealand. This government is serious about protecting them, as well as supporting Immigration Advisers who practice fairly and within the law.”

mmigration Advisers who practice in New Zealand will have to be licensed from 4 May 2009. People who work offshore but give advice about New Zealand immigration matters will need to be licensed by 4 May 2010.

Licensing is managed by the Immigration Advisers Authority, a statutory body that is hosted within the Department of Labour, but runs independently from the Department’s day-to-day immigration functions. The competency standards and code of conduct for Immigration Advisers are available on the Immigration Advisers Authority website (www.iaa.govt.nz)

Background Information

What does this new law mean in practice?

Under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act, anyone who gives immigration advice about New Zealand immigration matters will need to be licensed, unless exempt. However, there is a range of things one can do to assist migrants that is not considered “advice” (such as providing publicly available information, pointing a migrant to a website, directing someone to Immigration New Zealand or to a licensed Adviser, translation or interpretation, or settlement services). If assistance does not go beyond these areas, or if you qualify for an exemption, a licence is not needed.

Who is exempt from having to be licensed?

Certain people will be exempt from licensing, but can still provide advice. These include:
• People who provide immigration advice in an informal or family context only, so long as the advice is not provided systematically or for a fee
• Current members of Parliament and their staff who provide immigration advice within the scope of their employment agreement
• Foreign diplomats and consular staff accorded protection under certain Acts;
• Public service employees who provide immigration advice within the scope of their employment agreement
• Lawyers
• People working (either employed or volunteers) for community law centres, where at least one lawyer is involved with the centre
• People working (either employed or volunteers) for Citizens Advice Bureaux
• People who provide immigration advice offshore who advise on student visa and permit applications only
• People exempted by Regulations

Others might be prohibited or restricted from becoming licensed, such as someone convicted of an offence against the Immigration Act or an undischarged bankrupt.

Why is this new law to license immigration advisers needed?

Before the new law was passed, anyone could call themselves an Adviser, whether or not they were competent to give immigration advice. The actions of a small number of poor practitioners have seriously disadvantaged some migrants, as well as damaging the reputations of legitimate Advisers.

By making Immigration Advisers a licensed, recognised profession, migrants can trust that they will be provided with the correct and best information, whether they receive it directly from Immigration New Zealand or from an Adviser. As well as protecting migrants, the new law protects Advisers who are above board and practice fairly. Licensing will help ensure that they give their clients sound advice and professional service. The law also supports new continuing professional development programmes and recognition of their work as a regulated profession.

What are examples of problems/issues that highlighted the need for this law?

A report by the Department of Labour appraising the immigration advice industry identified complaints about immigration advisers, including:
• lodging unfounded/abusive refugee status claims without the client's knowledge
• inaccurate advice about immigration policy leading to poor and costly decisions
• theft of money and documents
• failing to lodge applications and appeals
• failing to pass on information from the Department to the client
• knowingly submitting false information or fraudulent documents to the Department

In some cases of incompetent or unethical practices by an adviser, applicants suffered serious financial loss due to high fees and unsuccessful settlement in New Zealand. Some also suffered damage to careers, family dislocation, significant personal hardship and were unable to gain approval to re-enter New Zealand. The cumulative harm caused was in many cases significant, and irreversible in others.

04/03/08 - Taiwan's migrants give NZ wide berth

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Tuesday March 04, 2008

Uncertainty over presidential elections three weeks away has prompted many in Taiwan to think of emigrating. But unlike the last big migration wave in 1995, few will be coming to New Zealand.

During the height of Taiwan's missile crisis in the mid-90s more than a third, or 12,000, of the 35,000 Taiwanese who moved out of the country chose New Zealand, according to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. But the office's press counsellor, Andy Tseng, said that number had dropped to about a dozen families moving here permanently last year. "Taiwanese are choosing other countries like Australia, America and Canada, where they think opportunities for business and jobs are better."

Clarissa Chang, who lived in Auckland between 1999 and 2002, said New Zealand's image as a place where "Taiwanese can settle and live happily ever after" had "taken a beating". Thousands of Taiwanese, like her, had returned to Taiwan after failing to get good jobs or successfully run businesses here. Ms Chang, a public relations executive, and her doctor husband returned to Taipei after they failed to find employment in their professions.

The opposition Kuomintang (KMT) favours closer political, business and social ties with China, but some Taiwanese think that an opposition victory could mean loss of jobs and decent wages.

A television poll there on Sunday showed opposition presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou widening his lead over rival Frank Hsieh of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and this, Ms Chang said, was further fuelling fear among many Taiwanese and forcing them to think of moving to another country. 

'Many are afraid that we will lose our jobs or be forced to accept very low pay because there will be millions of Chinese who will work for a fraction of what we earn," Ms Chang said.The Government Information Office's spokesperson in Taipei, Weiling Liu, told the Herald the country's relationship with China was becoming the key issue before the March 22 vote.

"People are extremely concerned, and many overseas Taiwanese, from as far as North America and even New Zealand, have indicated that they are coming back to vote."

(Source NZ Herald, Lincoln Tan)

28/02/08 - Changes to Transitioning to Recognised Seasonal Employer Policy

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Friday, February 22, 2008

The Transitioning to Recognised Seasonal Employer (TRSE) policy was put in place in November 2007 to assist employers in the horticulture and viticulture industries that were not yet ready to apply for full Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) status.

16/02/08 - Asians winning acceptance

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Saturday February 16, 2008

New Zealanders' perceived discrimination against Asians has dropped to its lowest level since tracking began seven years ago.

Polls by the Human Rights Commission found that the proportion of New Zealanders who see "some" or "a great deal" of discrimination against Asians has dropped from a peak of almost 80 per cent in 2003-04 to just 68 per cent at the end of last year.

But this was still the highest discrimination rate perceived against any group, followed by the overweight, welfare beneficiaries and recent immigrants (all 62 per cent), refugees (56 per cent) and gays and lesbians (54 per cent).

Race Relations Commissioner Joris de Bres, who will present details to the Federation of Ethnic Councils in Christchurch today, said the downward trend suggested that Asians were slowly becoming accepted in New Zealand, as Pacific Islanders and other immigrants had been before them.

"Eighteen years of Asian migration in Auckland is starting to become a fact of life," he said.

The polls of 750 people by UMR Research found that 71 per cent of Asians themselves still feel that New Zealanders discriminate against them - 26 per cent "some" and 45 per cent "a great deal".

Pacific Islanders feel more accepted. Only 4 per cent feel they are discriminated against "a great deal" and 58 per cent feel "some" discrimination.

But Maori feel even more heavily discriminated against than Asians - 24 per cent "a great deal" and 49 per cent "some".

Asked if they personally have been discriminated against, 31 per cent of Maori but only 20 per cent of non-Maori said "yes".

The number of complaints to the Human Rights Commission over "racial disharmony" jumped from 27 in 2006 to 66 last year.

More than half (35) related to a comment by Whakatane District councillor Russell Orr that "lazy, greedy, lawless and ungrateful cheats that infest the outer regions of our district [should] be made to comply with the same rules you and I abide by".

Mr de Bres said the commission decided not to prosecute Mr Orr because the comment, though "offensive", did not meet the legal test of "inciting" racial disharmony.

Mr Orr last night stood by his comments. "There are lazy, lawless, ungrateful cheats out there and I'm not going to apologise to them."
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(Source - NZ Herald, Simon Collins)

14/02/08 - Immigration u-turn grants centenarian's wish

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Thursday February 14, 2008

A 101-year-old widower will live out his twilight years with his only living relative in New Zealand after immigration officials reversed a decision to send him back to England. The widower, a retired research chemist who has been living with his English-born New Zealand-resident son since 2006, was refused residency on a technicality - his son hadn't lived here for the required minimum 184 days in each of the three years before his application was made.In his application for residency, the centenarian told immigration officials he no longer wished to live alone in Britain and his 63-year-old son thought the sensible and responsible option was for him to come to live with him and his wife.

The 101-year-old arrived on a visitor's permit in July 2006. It expired in April 2007, but he didn't renew it because he believed he wasn't required to while his residence application was being determined.

In his appeal to the independent Residence Review Board (RRB), the man said he had "adequate financial resources" to support himself and met Immigration New Zealand (INZ) health requirements.

Despite the man's savings of some $363,000 and receiving an annual pension of almost $83,000, the RRB confirmed INZ's decision to decline the man's application saying there were no special circumstances.

"Overall, the appellant's age, his financial resources, the fact that his son lives in New Zealand and the fact the appellant has no family in Great Britain do not make him special," the RRB said. There is no evidence that the appellant could not have continued to live in Great Britain alone and without his son, as he had done for many years."But immigration officials softened their hardline stance after intervention from Immigration Minister Clayton Cosgrove, who asked them to take another look at the man's case.

Mr Cosgrove said both he and Associate Immigration Minister Shane Jones had discretion to ask officials to look again at exceptional cases referred to them. e said he asked immigration officials to review the man's case after he became aware of publicity in the media. Ministerial intervention was rarely used and only in exceptional circumstances.

"I'm pleased," Mr Cosgrove said. I think it's a good decision and I hope the gentleman has a good life. "An INZ spokeswoman said where cases did not meet policy requirements, there was provision for the individual merits of the case to be looked at, "and in this case residency was granted".

"It is important to note that no two cases are exactly the same and where discretion is used it is based on the specific circumstances of that case," she said.

New Zealand welcomed another centenarian immigrant yesterday when 102-year-old Briton Eric King-Turner arrived in Wellington aboard the Saga Rose cruise ship. r King-Turner, New Zealand's oldest immigrant, moved halfway across the world with his New Zealand-born wife of more than 12 years, Doris, 89. They are believed to be settling in Nelson, where Mrs King-Turner is understood to own a house.

(Source - NZPA, Cullen Smith)

12/02/08 - One centenarian arrives, another gets kicked out

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Tuesday February 12, 2008

As New Zealand prepares a welcome mat for its oldest immigrant, another centenarian is being kicked out after immigration officials rejected his bid to spend his twilight years here with his only living relative.

Eric King-Turner, a 102-year-old retired dentist from Hampshire, is sailing to New Zealand with his New Zealand-born wife, Doris, 87, and is expected here on Saturday. But a 101-year-old widower, who has been living with his English-born, New Zealand-resident son since 2006, has been told he must go.

The Residence Review Board decided that the circumstances of the unnamed widower, a retired research chemist who has savings of $363,000 and gets an annual pension of nearly $83,000, "do not make him special". In his application for New Zealand residency, the 101-year-old said he wanted to live out his final years with his only living relative, his adopted son - now aged 63 - and his daughter-in-law.However, the elderly man's son, while having been granted New Zealand residency in 1994 and holding a New Zealand passport issued in 1997, hadn't lived in the country for the required minimum 184 days in each of the three years before the application was made.

The son spent only 13 days in New Zealand between March 2004 and March 2005, 23 days in the year to March 2006 and 174 days in the year to March 2007, and was therefore ineligible to sponsor his father for residency under the "parent" category.

A former senior employee with a New Zealand financial institution, the son had accepted a job running a similar organisation in Europe in the "mid- to late 1990s", according to the review board's decision. He decided to return to live in New Zealand in 2006 and last year was appointed an adjunct professor by a New Zealand university.In his appeal to the board, the 101-year-old said he had "adequate financial resources" to support himself and met Immigration New Zealand health requirements.

"I no longer have any property or assets outside of New Zealand; the centre of gravity of my immediate family is very clearly in New Zealand," he said.

He appealed against the decision to refuse him residency, requesting an exception to policy. In its decision, the board said: "Overall, the appellant's age, his financial resources, the fact that his son lives in New Zealand and the fact the appellant has no family in Great Britain do not make him special."

(Source - NZPA, Cullen Smith)

10/02/08 - Peters: NZ seen as 'soft touch'

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Sunday February 10, 2008

Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says the woman charged with hijacking a plane should never have been allowed into New Zealand as a refugee.Asha Ali Abdille appeared in Christchurch District Court yesterday on a number of wounding charges, and became the first person in New Zealand to be charged with attempting to take control of an aircraft.

Peters raised questions about Abdille in 1994, then under Parliamentary privilege 10 years later, when he said she had a "police record a mile long" with convictions that would "make Al Capone proud".

In March 2005, Peters asked former Immigration Minister Paul Swain in Parliament if he was "confident that Asha Ali Abdille, the refugee sickness beneficiary whom he ordered an inquiry into last year, and who has a string of criminal convictions, is not a threat to the New Zealand community; if so, why?"

Swain replied: "Yes, I did order an inquiry into that. There were two issues: firstly, the seriousness of the alleged crimes, which is still being investigated, and, secondly, whether she was a fit and proper person to bring in other family members.

"That whole policy issue is one that I have currently under review."

A spokeswoman for current Immigration Minister Clayton Cosgrove said the Department of Labour would collect every file on Abdille, including the Swain-ordered investigation, to be reviewed next week.
Until then, she said, Cosgrove would be unable to comment and sub judice laws may gag him because Abdille was before the courts.

Peters yesterday told the Herald on Sunday he had handed information about Abdille "on a platter" to officials at the Immigration Department, but nothing happened. "This is a matter of national security. We now have a reputation of having hijackings on planes. Somebody has to be held accountable for that."
Peters told the Herald On Sunday he had gathered information on Abdille from several sources, including police records.
"She had a list as long as your arm. I wanted to know what she was doing here. The law needs to be changed to get rid of people like that.

"We have homegrown people with long records. Why do we need to import them?"

New Zealand was seen as a "soft touch" by people trying to immigrate, said Peters. More than that... it's seen as plain stupid. It's a massive drain on the ratepayers of New Zealand."New Zealanders need to understand, they are just buying themselves serious problems if they don't act. I want to see the same rules that are applied by nearly every other country."

Peters said it was unfortunate that the actions of some refugees caused others to be "tarred with the same brush".
"That's a human reaction and I blame the authorities."

(Source NZ Herald) 

05/02/08 - Migration fall hits housing market and employers

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Tuesday February 05, 2008

The net inflow of migrants dried up in December, providing no support for a sagging housing market and no relief for employers grappling with a scarcity of workers.

There was a net loss of 106 "permanent and long-term" migrants, who are those arriving with the stated intention of staying for at least a year or leaving for at least a year. Adjusted for seasonal variations there was a net gain of just 20.
It left the final tally for 2007 a gain of 5500. That is little more than half its average level over the past 10 years.

It meant that, on a net basis, the country lost five New Zealanders for every six non-New Zealanders it gained. Two out of three New Zealand emigrants headed for Australia.

Net migration has been falling since the start of last year and is at its lowest level since late 2001.

A Statistics New Zealand report on demographic trends published last month does not show large differences in the age between people leaving and those arriving.

For example, in the year to June 2007, 52 per cent of immigrants were aged in their 20s or 30s, while 53 per cent of emigrants were in that age group. While there was a net loss of 1700 people in their early 20s, 60 per cent of the net inflow of migrants were aged between 25 and 40.

In terms of the impact on the labour force the net gain in population is offset by a higher proportion of immigrants (45 per cent) than emigrants (37 per cent) being classified as not in the workforce on the grounds of their age or because they are students.

The loss of 250 tradespeople followed five years of gains and is small as against the loss of 1300 to 1700 a year between 1998 and 2001.

ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley said with net immigration slipping below its long-run average it was providing little impetus to the housing market or consumer spending.

"It is not too far away from what the Reserve Bank was expecting so in terms of housing market demand they will see it as business as usual."

The flipside was not much relief for firms looking for workers. "We have for some time seen relatively subdued labour force growth. So you are not getting that relief valve that was there when migration was really strong."

(New Zealand Herald, Brian Fallow)

04/02/08 - Job market tipped to remain tight

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Monday February 04, 2008

Figures out this week are expected to show a labour market that is still very tight, with unemployment low and wage growth high by historical standards.

ANZ National Bank economists expect tomorrow's reading on wage inflation to record a 0.9 per cent rise in private sector ordinary time pay in the the December quarter. That would push the annual rate to 3.3 per cent, a record high but barely enough to offset a 3.2 per cent rise in the consumers price index over the same period. They expect wage growth to remain strong for some time, pointing to firms reporting in the Institute of Economic Research's quarterly survey of business opinion that it is only getting harder to find both skilled and unskilled labour.

And the historical lags between unemployment - which is at a record low of 3.5 per cent - and wage growth suggests the latter could remain as high as it is now for the next 12 to 18 months, or even go higher, they say. The average forecast among market economists is for the unemployment rate to tick up to 3.6 per cent when Statistics New Zealand releases the December household labour force survey on Thursday.

In the September quarter employment contracted by 0.3 per cent, following very strong gains in the first half of last year.
But that was outstripped by a sharp fall in the female participation rate which measures the proportion of women of working age who are in the labour force, that is, either employed or actively seeking work.

ASB Bank economist Daniel Wills expects to see that drop in employment reversed in the December quarter and a modest rise in participation.

"We expect unemployment to average 4.1 per cent over 2008 - still a very low rate by overseas and historical standards." The average unemployment rate over the past 20 years is 6.2 per cent. Westpac economist Dominick Stephens by contrast expects the unemployment rate to continue to fall, to 3.4 per cent, and to stay that low all through this year before declining further still to 3.1 per cent next year. He bases these forecasts in part on the ageing of the population and a pattern of people withdrawing from the labour force altogether when the economic cycle goes into a down phase, which means they are not counted as officially unemployed.

The high unemployment rates of the late 1980s and 1990s were exceptional and reflected sudden structural changes in the economy, Stephens said. "There is no reason to expect a repeat of that period. "The market is forecasting employment growth of 0.4 per cent for the quarter but Stephens is more optimistic, picking 0.6 per cent.Indicators such as business confidence and hiring intentions suggests even more than that, he said, but the same surveys also showed firms are finding it increasingly difficult to find the staff they want.

"Firms want to hire, but can't. Employment growth is being restrained more by a lack of available workers than a lack of jobs. "One reason is emigration to Australia. ASB expects migration figures due out today to show the net inflow of migrants to have dwindled to an annualised rate of about 6000. That would be about half the rate of 2005 and 2006.*

LIKELY FINDINGS

- Dwindling net immigration.

- A rebound in jobs growth.

- A slight rise in the unemployment rate.

- Continuing strength in wages growth as labour remains scarce.

(NZ Herald,  Brian Fallow ) 

31/01/08 - Immigration Advisers Authority newsletter #1

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Immigration Advisers Authority newsletter #1

January 2008

With 2008 well and truly underway, it’s a good time to bring you up to speed on the Immigration Advisers Authority’s progress to date and where this year will take us. 

Public consultation closed
Our public consultation on the draft competency standards and code of conduct closed on 21 December. Throughout the consultation, the IAA website received 1700 visits from 62 countries. I was pleased with the quality of the submissions received and would like to thank everyone who took part. All feedback is being considered, and the finalised standards and code will be sent to the Minister of Immigration for approval next month.  We expect final documents to be posted on our website in the first week of March.

Assessments and evidence requirements
The right assessment procedures are crucial to any high-quality licensing system. We have engaged Competency International Limited (CIL) to develop our assessment model and evidence requirements. CIL specialises in qualifications development, workplace assessment operations and training linked to competency standards. CIL has worked with clients around the world, as well as with ITOs, tertiary institutions, private industry and government agencies in New Zealand. Most recently CIL developed the assessment tools for the Licensed Building Practitioner Scheme for the New Zealand Department of Building and Housing.

Getting the Authority ready for business
The Authority has signed a lease for permanent premises in Symonds Street, Auckland. A re-fit will commence in February and we expect to move in late March. We will update you with contact details closer to the time.
We are now also advertising for five initial roles: 
¬    Business Manager
¬    Senior Adviser Professional Standards
¬    Team Leader Licensing Assessment
¬    Licensing Administrator Officer
¬    Team Leader Investigations
You can find out more about these roles here: Jobs at IAA (applicants must be a New Zealand permanent resident or citizen).

Countdown to licensing
And of course there is our most important milestone:  the launch of Immigration Advisers’ licensing on 4 May. With only a few months to go before the Authority opens for business, we are focused on having processes and systems in place that work well from day one. If you have any ideas or feedback, please contact us on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., freephone 0508 IAA IAA (0508 422 422 — New Zealand only) or write to us at PO Box 6222, Wellesley St, Auckland, New Zealand.

Otherwise, you’ll hear from us again next month.


Barry Smedts
Registrar of Immigration Advisers