Work Permit/Visa

My current Work Permit/Visa expired on 31 May 2010, so as soon as I returned from the UK at the end of March I submitted my application for a new Permit/Visa to ensure I am legal!

I have already submitted my Permanent Resident Application through the Family Stream (thanks to the Kiwi!) but have been told that this could take a year to process, in fact my application sat in a pile somewhere for nearly 6 months before my application was assigned to someone! (The $700 for my application was taken back in January, though!)

It seems that most Kiwi’s have no idea how much is involved in the immigration process, with the majority of them stunned at the process I have to go through to be in New Zealand legally, despite being married to a Kiwi!  They thought that I automatically got into the country on the basis of being married to a Kiwi.

I cannot just rock up in NZ and get a job.  I, like everyone other immigrant, have to get a Work Permit/Visa allowing me to work within NZ.  To apply for Permanent Residency I have also had to get another Police Certificate (£35 each), a medical ($471) which I got through Life Clinic, as well as providing a whole heap of evidence about my marriage to the Kiwi and our relationship as well as the Kiwi providing a Police Certificate and completing  documentation supporting my application.

In fairness to Immigration NZ my new Work Permit/Visa application was processed within 2 weeks, but I was horrified to find that it will run until mid April next year, so in effect I have lost out on 6 weeks of my current Visa,…or so I thought.  It seems that since I applied for my Permit/Visa before I departed for NZ, but spent 2 months travelling before arriving in NZ, they consider that they have given me extra time.  It is a little confusing.

Anyway, meantime it’s fingers crossed for the old PR!

(P.S We have been married 8 years this month, too!)