New Zealand
Is a Work Permit Required in New Zealand?
In New Zealand, the requirement for a work permit for foreign nationals is driven by the country’s specific economic policies and labor market needs. One of the primary reasons is to protect employment opportunities for New Zealand citizens and residents. With a relatively small population and a focus on maintaining high employment levels, the New Zealand government prioritizes local job seekers. By requiring work permits, the government ensures that foreign workers are employed only in positions where there is a clear shortage of local expertise, thereby safeguarding jobs for New Zealanders.
In 2024/2025, New Zealand continues to enhance its work permit system to address skill shortages in key sectors like healthcare, technology, and agriculture. Another crucial reason for the work permit requirement is to support New Zealand’s economic growth and development goals. The country is focused on developing key sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, technology, and tourism. The work permit system allows the government to attract skilled foreign professionals who can contribute to these industries, filling critical skill gaps and promoting innovation.
Ensuring compliance with labor laws and standards is a fundamental aspect of New Zealand’s work permit system. The government uses this process to ensure that foreign workers are employed under conditions that meet New Zealand labor regulations. This includes guaranteeing fair wages, safe working conditions, and access to social security benefits. Recent updates in 2024/2025 further reinforce these standards to ensure fair treatment for all workers.
Security considerations are also integral to the work permit requirement. The New Zealand government conducts thorough background checks and verification of qualifications to ensure that foreign workers do not pose any security risks and possess the necessary skills and credentials. This scrutiny helps maintain the integrity of the New Zealand workforce and ensures that foreign workers contribute positively to the economy and society.
About the New Zealand Job Market
Number of Expats:
No data found
Expats Job Websites:
Popular Industries for Expats:
IT, New Media, Medicine, Construction & Engineering
Types of New Zealand Work Visa
Every employee willing to work in New Zealand has to apply for a work visa. In New Zealand, there are 3 major types of work permits issued:
Temporary Work Visas:
This type of New Zealand work permit can be obtained:
- If you have a confirmed job offer from a New Zealand employer.
- If you are traveling to New Zealand to attend an event or for a specified purpose.
- If you are interested in accumulating work experience.
- If you’re willing to join a business partner in the country and also continue the professional or business responsibilities.
Essential Skills Work Visa:
This is issued based on the Australian and New Zealand standard classification of occupations also known as ANZSCO. It ranges from level 1 (the high skilled jobs) to 5 (low skilled jobs).
For the ANZSCO skill level 1-3, a maximum of 3 years duration New Zealand work permit visa is issued.
If your occupation falls in the ANZSCO skill levels 4 and 5, the maximum duration of a 1-year work permit visa is issued.
For the ANZSCO level 1 visa, a maximum duration of a 5-year work visa is issued.
Entrepreneur Work Visa:
This 3-year New Zealand work permit is issued to entrepreneurs. It helps them to relocate to New Zealand for establishing or purchasing a business.
This work permit is issued in two stages:
- Start-up stage: In this stage, you will be issued a 12-month work visa to buy or establish a business in New Zealand.
- Balance stage: In this stage, you will be issued a 24-month work permit that is the remaining from the 3 years of entrepreneur work visa.
Requirements for New Zealand Work Permit and by New Zealand Employers
The New Zealand work permit requirements vary according to the type of visa you are going to apply.
Employment Criteria for New Zealand Work Visa
- You should be aged 55 years or under.
- Your salary will be a minimum of NZ$55,000
- You have a job offer that covers a minimum of 30 hours of employment per week for 2 years or more.
Requirements for Essential Skills Work Visa
- Your job offer should be listed under the Long Term Skills Shortage List, the Immediate Skills Shortage List, or the Canterbury Skills Shortage List.
- You should have a temporary work visa and also a Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) invitation or an SMC application in progress.
For The ANZSCO skill level 1-3:
- You should have a job offer that is categorized under skill level 1 in ANZSCO.
- Your annual salary should be approximately NZ$55,000 per annum.
Requirements for Entrepreneur Work Visa
- You should have a minimum capital investment of NZ$10,000.
- You should have a minimum of 120 points on a scale that decides the success of the proposed business.
- You should have a detailed business plan for the proposed business.
- You should not be involved in any business fraud or any kind of financial misconduct.
Valid Documents Required for New Zealand Work Permit
- Two passport-sized color photographs of you taken within the timeline of 6 months.
- Your passport or travel document which is valid for at least 3 months from the date one is required to go to their home country
- Your medical and chest X-ray certificates
- Police certificates from your citizenship country or any country where you have lived for a minimum of 5 years till 17 years of age
- Your job offer letter includes: employer’s name, employee’s name and address, your designation along with role and responsibilities, address of the place of employment, pay and conditions of employment, qualifications and experience requirements, confirmation of whether or not registration in New Zealand is required, duration of the job and the duration of job availability
New Zealand Work Permit Process For Application
Getting a work permit in New Zealand is quite an easy process in comparison to the visa application process for many countries.
- As an employee, you fill the work visa application form.
- As an employer, you have to ensure that the job vacancy is under the Long term skills shortage list and meets the required employment criteria.
- Fill out the designated sections of the Employer Supplementary form and send it to the employee to submit.
- Submit the application to the nearest Immigration New Zealand branch.
Timeframe for Work Permit Application
The timeframe for a New Zealand work permit visa varies for different categories. If you have applied for the Essential skill work visa, it takes a minimum of 30 days to 45 days.
How Does Multiplier Help With Work Permit?
Holding 100+ local entities, we are here to simplify your task as an employer and help in hiring talents from across the globe. Developed by our team of talented experts, this HR suite offers end-to-end solutions to our users.
With the help of our SAAS-based solutions, you can raise your request for a New Zealand work permit. Post that, our team experts will ease your task by driving the entire process from the processing time to the document checklist to the costs. During the entire process, you will be kept notified.
