Value of work to residence visa applicants ignored
Good outcomes for NZ work to residence visa applicants?
A blind man and a physically challenged person were once caught in a forest fire. One could not see and the other could not walk, hence both faced the danger of death. Then they hit upon a plan: the blind man would carry the physically challenged man, who would guide him out of the fire.
Cooperation and coordination can always be put to positive use and benefit everyone. Sometimes, individual efforts alone will not suffice.
I talk about these twin aspects of human endeavour because they give rise to hope: a good outcome can come of effort. An outcome is termed ‘good’ if all parties emerge as winners as opposed to a bad outcome in which only a few gain, marginalising others as victims.
It amazes me when people adopt approaches that are clearly not good for all, especially when equally plausible alternative approaches are available, providing benefits to all key players. The NZ immigration system seems to be based on a series of arbitrary checkboxes, rather than on judging migrants’ value, as highlighted by the stories of two work to residence visa applicants.
Immigration New Zealand puts the dampers on work to residence visa application
Take the New Zealand Immigration system for instance. Peter (not his real name) lives in Auckland. He had completed two New Zealand qualifications and held skilled employment. His job complied with the criteria specified for skilled employment making him eligible for permanent residence. Therefore, he lodged an application for a work visa. He was confident he would be successful in his visa application, as he thought he had met all the requirements.
However, the case officer at Immigration New Zealand (INZ) who was handling his application decided to return his application, because Peter’s passport was damp. He therefore claimed that he was unable to lodge the application.
Peter became an overstayer.
He was heart-broken. His child, born prematurely in New Zealand, had to be hospitalised and treatment costs were mounting; he was not entitled to free medical care.
The compliance team at INZ, Immigration New Zealand, want Peter to leave New Zealand immediately. They are chasing him, but negotiations have stalled this deportation.
Good prospects for New Zealand
The question that one has to ask is, “How can a wet passport can put a person such as Peter in such a predicament, despite two New Zealand qualifications, a skilled job offer, potential skilled migrant status, and good settlement prospects in New Zealand?”
Are we are missing something here? Where is the common sense in this approach? Where is the collaboration?” Why was Peter’s potential to contribute to the progress of New Zealand not considered?
Selling migrant dreams
Vineeta (not her real name) hails from Punjab, India, where she is a registered nurse. Bitten by the foreign bug, she was keen to settle down in a country like New Zealand.
She was advised to complete a drug-counselling course with the usual advice: “Go to New Zealand, complete the course. You will then get a one-year job search visa after which you can get a two-year graduate work visa. Then, you can apply for New Zealand residence.”
With much hope, Vineeta arrived in New Zealand, only to find that a majority of her 100 classmates were dentists, nurses, and medical practitioners from India. As time went by, she found that getting a job is not was easy as it was made out to be. In fact, only three people from her class got a job relevant to their qualifications.
Vineeta now works as a caregiver, a noble job but not one of her choice.
Since they were “sold dreams”, most of her classmates are desperate to find a way to stay in New Zealand.
Vineeta visited our offices last week.
False migration information
“Why did you not come to New Zealand and just undergo a competency course and commence nursing registration since you have met all other requirements?” I asked her. She was apparently misled by false information and/or promises. Had she followed the right path, she would have by now become a permanent resident in New Zealand.
Such cases are depressing. Imagine all those wasted years and money.
New Zealand migration realities
I sincerely hope that in the future, people coming from overseas, especially India and Fiji, are aware of the realities, make proper inquiries, understand the system and assess the true realities of for many work to residence visa applicants in achieving their dreams.
At Idesi Legal steps are underway to rectify Peter’ and Vineeta’s situations.
