New Zealand: Changes to Immigration Settings

Key Points  

• New Zealand announced a wide range of changes to New Zealand’s workforce and immigration pathways on 23 September 2023 

Overview  

The government of New Zealand announced a wide range of changes to New Zealand’s workforce and immigration pathways on 23 September 2023. The changes include: 

• Adding 17 roles to the Green List. 
  • The roles will be added to the Green List from March 2024. More information, including the specific requirements for each role and the specific residence pathway, will be available nearer the time.   
• Increasing the Recognized Seasonal Employer cap to 19,500 for the 2023/24 season. 
  • The new RSE cap will allow access to workers from participating Pacific countries, providing workforce to the horticulture and wine sectors where local workers are unavailable.  
• Closing the Recovery Visa to new applicants from 23 September 2023. 
• Existing holders of a Recovery Visa in New Zealand can apply for a 3-month extension. 
• Adding a small number of roles to the Construction and Infrastructure Sector Agreement. 
• Requiring a judicial warrant for out-of-hours compliance visits. 

What are the Changes?  

The government of New Zealand announced plans to introduce a number of changes under its immigration pathway and foreign labor work options.  

Looking Ahead  

Continue to check the government of New Zealand’s website and Envoy’s website for the latest updates and information.