Ankur Sabharwal is the owner of immigration advisory Visa Matters. He is a licensed immigration adviser dealing with complex immigration matters.
OPINION: The Government last month announced a re-set of the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) from 9 October onwards, reducing the points pass mark from 180 points to six points.
Currently, applicants can claim points or bonus points for up to 12 “employability and capacity building” factors. From 9 October, they can only claim points for one of three combinations:
In a handful of cases, people with exceptionally high incomes, who have PhDs or who took six years to gain their full licence/registration won’t need to claim points for skilled work experience in NZ to be approved residence.
So, who are the winners and losers in the new SMC?
From October, only people with well-paid jobs can be approved residence under the Skilled Migrant Category. Low-skilled workers must be paid $44.49/hour (1.5 x median wage) or higher, while mid and high-skilled workers must be paid $29.66/hour (current median wage) or more.
Under the new SMC, no points will be awarded for skilled employment – it’s a core requirement for the main applicant to have a skilled job or job offer from an employer accredited by Immigration New Zealand (INZ).
INZ will still use the ANZSCO database to determine a job’s skill level, with skill level 4 and 5 (lower-skilled) roles requiring the higher pay rate.
Currently, people outside the country who score 180 points can lodge expressions of interest and be invited to apply under SMC. From October, that won’t be possible unless they have an offer of skilled employment in NZ from an INZ-accredited employer.
From October, only people with highly paid work experience in NZ, gained within the last five years, can claim points for this factor. Currently, skilled work experience from any country, gained at any time, may score points under SMC, and there is no minimum pay threshold.
Under the existing SMC, people with skilled work experience outside NZ can claim up to 50 points (of the 180 points they need to be approved residence), but they will score no points for this work experience from October onwards.
Until now, claiming points for occupational registration or licensing hasn’t been possible. From October, applicants can claim between three and six points for their licence or registration if they work in an occupation which requires this.
Someone with a diploma or a certificate can score 40 points for their qualification under the current SMC. From October, they’ll score zero points. Only recognised bachelor’s degrees or higher qualifications will score three to six points.
Currently, the main applicant can claim up to 40 bonus points for their partner’s qualification and employment in NZ. Under the new SMC – zero points for having a skilled partner (although they can still include their partner in their application).
It appears to be simpler and easier to understand, with fewer factors to claim points for.
This should help staff at INZ, who sometimes get tied up in knots deciding whether to award points for factors such as skilled employment and skilled work experience overseas.
With fewer factors to consider, INZ hopes to reduce processing times to eight weeks from five months (and two years previously).
The other thing I like about the new SMC is that it rewards people whose work experience and skilled employment are in NZ.
That is, people who have contributed to New Zealand’s labour market, and who are still contributing, will get to stay.
People whose jobs aren’t paid highly, who don’t require occupational registration or licensing and who don’t hold a bachelor’s degree will miss out.
I’m already advising some clients with diplomas to consider upgrading their qualifications while they are working full-time – that way, they will be able to claim points for their qualification as well as their NZ skilled work experience.
Or, if people score 180 points under the existing SMC, they should lodge expressions of interest quickly – the cut-off date is 15 August.
DISCLAIMER: This article does not constitute immigration advice. Individuals need to seek personal advice from a New Zealand licensed immigration adviser or lawyer to assess their unique situation. Ankur can be contacted at info@visamatters.co.nz.
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