New border exception for families of migrant workers: Who can travel to NZ?

The latest announcement by Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi on new border exception for families of some migrant workers is generating a huge anticipation within temporary migrants stuck overseas.

While the announcement is largely targeted on the families of critical health care workers, who were not being able to enter NZ because of an existing anomaly within the policy which had gained much media attention in recent months propelling Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to intervene and assure a quick fixing of the problem.

There are two miniscule categories of partners/families of other temporary migrant workers – “partners/families of highly-skilled workers" and "Partners and dependent children who held a visa before the border closure”.

Let’s understand more on this.

Who are “highly-skilled workers in other sectors currently in NZ” allowed to bring families onshore?

To be eligible to enter New Zealand, one must:

• be the partner or dependent child of a person who is currently in New Zealand on a temporary visa.

The person in New Zealand must:

• be currently living and employed in New Zealand, and
• earn at least twice the median salary — currently NZD $106,080 per year
• hold a visa that is valid for 12 months or more after the date the request to travel is submitted.

The person in New Zealand must also meet one or more of the following:

• they have unique experience and technical or specialist skills not readily obtainable in New Zealand
• they have a role essential for the completion or continuation of a science programme under a government funded or partially government-funded contract, including research and development exchanges and partnerships, and have the support of the Science, Innovation and International Branch at MBIE to carry out this work

A role essential for the delivery or execution of one of the following:

• an approved major infrastructure project, or a government approved event, or a major government approved programme
• an approved government-to-government agreement
• work with a significant wider benefit to the national or regional economy.

Partners and dependent children who held a visa before the border closure.

This category would cater to the families of other temporary migrant workers who would have a valid relationship-based visa at the time of border closure (such as General Visitor Visa based on relationship) but could not enter NZ before border closure on March 19, 2020.

They can now enter NZ provided they continue to have a valid visa and their NZ based partners also have a 12-month valid visa.

INZ website says - to be eligible to enter New Zealand, partners or dependent children outside of New Zealand must hold a current visa based on their relationship to the person in New Zealand.

The partner or parent must be currently in New Zealand and have 12 months or more remaining on their work or student visa when the request to travel is submitted. 

This category would actually affect the temporary migrant workers who were ordinarily living in New Zealand before border closure as their immediate family members of some of them would now be able to come to NZ – depending upon if they still have valid visas.

The Indian Weekender has sought actual numbers from Immigration New Zealand under this category who are likely to benefit from today’s announcement and a response was awaited at the time of publishing of this story.

The other category which would be getting major relief from today’s announcement is families of “critical health workers”.

Notably, a number of healthcare workers arrived just before or after the border closure, and were not able to bring their family with them at the time, while others under the same category coming after border closure were able to bring their families – an anomaly highlighted by recent media attention.