Temporary migrant workers living and working in the country for years are disappointed that their partners living overseas would be the last ones in the queue to enter NZ under the government’s latest five-stage border re-opening plan.
They are left with no option except agonizing wait for another additional nine months before their overseas-based partners will eventually get eligibility to apply for visas to enter the country and join them.
Notably, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced on Thursday, February 3, a five-stage border allowing fully vaccinated New Zealanders living in Australia to return from February 27 and allowing different categories of visa holders, new fee-paying international students, and new temporary migrant workers, and finally for all foreigners in October 2022.
There is a palpable disappointment within such temporary migrant workers onshore who have been living and working in the country for years and are now also eligible to apply for the one-off Residency 2021 visa that will set them for permanent residency in this country that the government is leaving their partners last in the queue to be eventually allowed to enter NZ.
“I have been separated from my wife for more than two years as I had to return back to NZ immediately after my marriage in early 2020 to continue with my work just before the beginning of Covid pandemic and border closure,” Manjit Singh said.
“Since then I have seen many announcements by the government allowing different categories of partners and family reunion, but we have been left out again and again leaving me and my wife distraught and heartbroken,” Manjit said.
“This is not what we signed for when I took the decision years ago to live, work and eventually settle in New Zealand,” Manjit said.
What is “not right” for separated partners of temporary migrants?
“What disappoints me the most is that the government is allowing new fee-paying international students, new migrant workers, who will be coming along with their partners but have got no mercy for migrant workers like me who are already onshore for years and separated from partners,” Manjit said.
Under the government’s latest border re-opening plan, migrant workers earning 1.5 times the median wage will be allowed in the second stage (March 13), and 5000 international students, and considering class exceptions for critical workforces that do not meet the 1.5 times the median wage test in step 3 (April 13) and followed by new migrant workers under Accredited Employer Work Visa category.
Under the government’s plan, the highly skilled family reunification border exception will be aligned with the 1.5 times the median wage bright-line test for Other Critical Workers.
However, many onshore temporary migrants and the majority of those within the Kiwi-Indian community would be forced to remain separated from their partners, because of the inherent bias within immigration rules towards relationships based on Indian marriages.
Immigration NZ is not processing any visas from overseas till August 2022 except for those who have a “critical purpose” to enter NZ. However, most of the Kiwi-Indian migrants are unable to get their partners under this visa category.
Technically most of the relationships based on Indian marriages, where the individual has to travel overseas from NZ to get married and return to continue with their work and lives while they wait for their spouse to arrive in the country, do not qualify under the current restrictive definition of partnership visas.
Govt’s previous decisions on critical health workers had also created “anomaly.”
Notably, this is not the first time when the government’s decision around allowing a new set of migrant workers from overseas (with eligibility to bring their families) had created an anomaly in the border policy.
Earlier in 2021, when the government opened exceptions for “critical health workers” – allowing them to enter the country along with their families – while onshore migrant health workers were being kept separated from their overseas-based families due to border restriction regime, forcing the Prime Minister to front-up and announce a relief.
Following Prime Minister’s intervention, Minister for Immigration Kris Faafoi had to announce a new “exception” allowing nurses and health sector workers already working onshore to bring their overseas-based families.
It seems there is a new anomaly in the making when many new temporary migrant workers will be able to bring their partners and families – while those already living in the country will be forced to remain separated from their own partners.
The Indian Weekender has reached out to the office of the Minister of Immigration Kris Faafoi for a response at the time of publishing this story, and a response is awaited.