Idesi Update: Should I apply for a visa from off-shore?
At IDESI LEGAL we provide help for migrants and refugees coming to New Zealand. If you’re a NZ migrant and need help with the immigration process, get in touch.
13 April 2022
April has remained a busy month with the beginning of processing of the March group of 2021 Residence Visas. Many people who have submitted applications in March are currently being assigned a case officer. Also happening in April is the staged reopening of New Zealand’s borders. On 12 April 2022 at 11:59pm, Australians and those who hold valid visas are allowed to travel to New Zealand without the requirement to quarantine. This brings us to this month’s frequently asked question- should I apply for a visa from off-shore?
Frequently Asked Question: Should I apply for a Visa from off-shore?
The answer to this question depends on the category of visa you intend to apply under. For visas based on partnership visitor, work and Residence Visas have been open since 2020.
For Work Visas the answer is a bit more complicated. As per the Immigration New Zealand website holders of the new Accredited Employer Work Visa will be allowed to travel to New Zealand from July. This means that you should start preparing your applications now. Please contact Idesi Legal if you require assistance. Other classes of work visa you may have to wait until October.
Visitor Visas for those from offshore and outside the list of Visa Waiver countries as of this point in time will not be processed until October. However it cannot be ruled out that this may be brought forward. With this in mind it is important to prepare your visa application so that it is ready prior to October or whichever date INZ starts processing applications.
If you are unsure or want to apply for a visa from off-shore, please contact Idesi Legal.
Immigration Law Corner – There is a warning on my file and it is wrong: What should I do?
As you may be aware, Immigration New Zealand places warnings on visa applicants files with varying degrees of seriousness. These can be as innocuous as the applicant being of acceptable standard of health. Sometimes these can be serious warnings regarding the character of the person.
In one recent case Idesi dealt with, a warning was placed on file which was premature and had no bearing on what actually occurred. This warning wrongly made an assessment of the character of the person. The warning was serious enough that it affected subsequent applications.
Immigration New Zealand is governed by the Privacy Act and have to abide by the Privacy Principles.
The relevant privacy principle in this instance is Privacy Principle 7 which is a person has a right to ask an organisation or business to correct information about them if they think it is wrong. This applies to Immigration New Zealand as well.
If Immigration New Zealand made a warning about you which is not right, you have the right to ask them to change it.
If there is a warning on your file which you feel is incorrect, a complaint can be lodged with Immigration New Zealand. If Immigration New Zealand does not do this or doesn’t do it adequately a complaint can be lodged with the Privacy Commissioner for a determination. Idesi Legal is experienced in these matters and can assist you. Please email us if you believe this to be the case.
In the Press: Victim of Modern Slavery speaks
If you thought slavery was something which happened in the past and does not happen in New Zealand – you would be wrong on both counts.
According to Anti-Slavery International – as many as 40 million people in the world are in some form of modern slavery. This takes various forms from including forced labour, debt bondage and hereditary slavery.
RNZ interviewed one of the victims of the biggest modern slavery case to be brought before the courts in New Zealand. Joseph Auga Matamata was convicted of enslaving 13 Samoan nationals and has been sentenced to 11 years in prison.
The person named as Junior escaped from his enslavement. As a result of the evidence presented- Immigration New Zealand and the NZ Police launched Operation Star – the largest operation into modern slavery conducted in NZ.
Following on from this a new class of visa was launched – the Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa.
As indicated in the RNZ article and elsewhere this is the tip of the iceberg – but as a society we must end the scourge of modern slavery wherever it occurs.
If any of the above raises questions – please contact Idesi Legal for further information.
