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Immigration law is a complex field, with changes happening at a rapid pace. With our  insights and updates, you’ll be well-equipped to understand the intricacies of the law. Out with the old… In July 2022 the Investor Plus 1 and 2  categories  closed to new applicants. We’re continuing to assist clients in the “tail” of […]

In 2022 and 2023, Richard Small and Pacific Legal were proud to partner with leading civil infrastructure and engineering firm Fulton Hogan, and Pacific community leaders including Melina Maka of the Tongan Advisory Council, to support a recruitment programme for machine operators and drivers from Tonga. Fulton Hogan staff visited Tonga to prequalify candidates in

What you need to know before purchasing property? We often get questions from clients about buying property in New Zealand. Having made a commitment to live in New Zealand, buying a home is the next logical step. The proposed exemption for high-value homes has not gone ahead, so what are the basic rules? Overseas Investment

Pacific Legal has been delighted to provide immigration services Tara Iti in the development of two world class golf courses at Te Arai Links at Mangawhai, north of Auckland. In the midst of the Covid border closure in 2020, we successfully obtained exemptions to allow the course designer and shapers to enter New Zealand. When we started

A new Minister Prior to the October 2023 election National’s immigration spokesperson Erica Stanford was very proactive in pointing out failures of the Accredited Employer Work Visa especially around migrant exploitation. On 27 November Hon Erica Stanford became the Immigration Minister.  The immigration industry, advisors and lawyers have generally welcomed her as a minister who

Back in November 2022 we commented on the reopening of the Parent Category. We explained that this was a lottery with 2500 places of which 2000 were dedicated to the many thousands of Parent Category Expressions of Interest (“EOI”) that had been lodged since selections were put on hold in October 2016. Any EOIs that

Immigration New Zealand will accept registrations for the 2023 Samoan Quota (SQ) and Pacific Access Category (PAC) ballots from 1 August 2023 to 5pm 31 August 2023. These annual programs enable individuals from Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, and Fiji to go into a lottery for residence in New Zealand. They were closed for a number

Requesting Your Information from Immigration New Zealand. Pacific Legal is the recognized field leader.   Here at Pacific Legal we have a long-standing reputation for requesting our clients’ files even in routine cases under the Privacy and Official Information Acts. This is because time and again we have found information that clients, sponsors and employers were not

On 21 June 2023 outgoing Minister of Immigration Michael Wood announced the biggest change to the Skilled Migrant visa in many years. A review was signalled months earlier and we now have the details. In this update we: Summarize key changes Explain the timeframe Indicate some winners and losers Key Changes The aim is to

Median Wage Required for Most Partners From May 31, 2023 partners of accredited employer and essential skills work visa holders who apply for a Partner of a Worker Work Visa will have new conditions that they  paid at least the median wage currently NZD $29.66. The median wage is reviewed annually. You Can Only Work