Entrepreneur VisaThe entrepreneur category allows self-employment and setting up a business here. It involves very small amounts of capital ($100-150,0000) There are some exceptions e.g. in ICT) but strict adherence to a three-year business plan.  Normally a work visa is required for two years before applying for residence. There is a fast track provision for new companies that reach NZD $500,000 PA turnover or employ at least five staff.  A key feature of the entrepreneur work visa is that it allows self-employment which virtually no other work visa category does.  There a ..read more

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 these categories They have 3 year (investor 1) and 4 year (investor 2) investment periods. And in with the new… Active Investor plus:The above categories have been replaced with the Active Investor Plus category This gives maximum  points for direc ..read more

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 Office The rules for non-New Zealand citizens are set out in the Overseas Investment Act 2005 (the Act). In the Act, an “overseas person” wanting to buy any “sensitive asset” in New Zealand must first obtain consent. Applications for consent are made to the Ov ..read more

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 there was no defined process for exceptions. They were determined case-by-case. The approval recognised the inherent value of golf tourism and this particular investment by Ric Kayne. The shapers and their families arrived to a very locked-down country, b ..read more

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 is genuinely interested in the portfolio.  Associate ministers The Minister sets the policy settings but individual cases that fall outside of established Immigration Policy, some humanitarian cases, residen ..read more

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 were received from 12 October 2022 were now to go into a ballot. Of course, for those sitting in the queue, sponsor and parent circumstances have changed dramatically since then. Medical issues For EOIs that are now being drawn some parents who were of good health when the EOI was ..read more

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 of years due to Covid 19 until 2022.They re-opened from 2022 with double the normal numbers for 2022 and 2023. They are now up from 75 to 150 Kiribati citizens, 75 to 150 Tuvaluan citizens, 250 to 500 Tongan citizens and from 250 to 500 Fijian citizens. The Sam ..read more

On 20 July 2022, the Ministers of Immigration and Economic and Regional Development announced the biggest overhaul in New Zealand’s investment instructions for over a decade. The new category is called the Active Investor Plus Category (AI+).  The focus is on direct investment into New Zealand firms to assist them to become more internationally competitive.  It replaces both the Investor 1 (“Investor Plus”) and Investor 2 categories.   The existing investor categories were closed to new applicants on 27 July 2022 and the new category will open on 19 September 2022.  Th ..read more

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 of years due to Covid 19 until 2022.They re-opened from 2022 with double the normal numbers for 2022 and 2023. They are now up from 75 to 150 Kiribati citizens, 75 to 150 Tuvaluan citizens, 250 to 500 Tongan citizens and from 250 to 500 Fijian citizens. The Sam ..read more

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 aware of. The file is far more than the emails and letters the client may have received. Pacific Legal has become known as a leader in this area and we have been able to make a critical difference for clients ranging from la ..read more