Employers in New Zealand could soon lose their accreditation to hire migrant workers if they fail to make genuine efforts to recruit unemployed New Zealanders first. The warning comes as thousands of migrant visas issued after the pandemic are set to expire in the coming months.
According to a report by Gill Bonnett of RNZ, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford told the Association for Migration and Investment’s annual conference that too many employers were bypassing the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) when filling lower-skilled roles.
“It is not negotiable for employers to not work with MSD in good faith and try to employ New Zealanders into skilled roles first,” Stanford said, as quoted by RNZ.
She revealed that more than one in six employers had either failed to contact MSD or did not adequately advertise vacancies before turning to migrant recruitment. Since accredited work visas were introduced in 2022, 20,000 more New Zealanders are now unemployed, she noted.
Stanford emphasised that employers with positions classed as skill levels 4 and 5 must look “closer to home” before seeking overseas workers.
“This is not a reflection on the individual migrants or their contribution,” she added. “It’s about ensuring that New Zealanders, especially those not eligible for a benefit, are given the first opportunity for these jobs,” RNZ quoted
Many migrants currently working in New Zealand are on three-year visas and will need to leave the country for at least a year unless they secure another visa type, such as residence. Employers replacing these workers must demonstrate genuine attempts to recruit locals, or face losing their accreditation to hire from overseas.
Stanford cited recent data showing that between March and July 2025, about 17 percent of job checks for lower-skilled roles did not meet MSD engagement requirements. Of these, 11 percent led to “revocation referral letter concerns,” meaning the employer had not contacted MSD at all, Gill Bonnett of RNZ reported.
Industries most likely to be affected include retail, hospitality, transportation, construction, health, and primary sectors—areas heavily reliant on migrant labour.
“I’ve been very clear with Immigration New Zealand that where employers do not do so, I am comfortable with their accreditation being revoked,” Stanford said. “If they can’t find someone locally, they can still apply for a job check, but they need to do it in good faith,” quoted RNZ.
She added that Immigration New Zealand and MSD were already identifying large employers with significant numbers of migrant workers whose visas are about to expire, ensuring they are guided through the transition.
Immigration adviser Tobias Tohill warned that the system for engaging with MSD lacks clarity, leaving employers uncertain about what constitutes “sufficient” engagement.
“Maybe the employer contacts MSD and gets no response,” he said. “They wait a week and assume that’s enough. It’s a very loose system with serious consequences, losing accreditation or being blacklisted for future applications,” Gill Bonnett of RNZ reported.
Tohill suggested clearer public guidelines and allowing immigration advisors or lawyers to assist employers with the MSD engagement process.
“Perhaps MSD should be required to give consistent responses across the country,” he added. “That would give employers more confidence that they’ve done things correctly,” Gill Bonnett of RNZ reported.
As New Zealand’s economic conditions evolve and the labour market shifts, the government is tightening oversight to ensure that local workers get priority, while keeping the door open for migrant recruitment only when genuinely necessary.
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