Three immigration related issues that needs new Minister’s immediate attention
The incoming Minister of Immigration Michael Wood, will have to hit the ground running from the word go as he inherits not only one of the most difficult portfolios in the government but is also expected to put his already immense popularity within the ethnic communities on the line as the new Minister of Immigration.
There is absolutely no denial of the fact that the immigration portfolio has been, till now the Achilles' heel of this sixth Labour government, with the two immediate previous ministers being known for their failures to be on top of the issues fronting the portfolio regardless of the self-patting by the government's promotion machinery.
Ever since this government stormed into the power in 2017 and in its second term in 2020, the department of immigration has been inundated with several teething issues emanating from both – the government's ideological obsession and the department's own bureaucratic mangles and inefficiency – in the process serving neither the country now the new migrants lining up at the borders to work and live in the country.
Since 2017 the government has been committed to drastically reducing incoming migrant workers into the country, particularly the "low-skilled migrant workers" – a term coined under the labour government and the number of international students – particularly in level 5 and level 6 courses.
Although many experts, including economists, businesses and immigration-related, have been apprehensive if the radical measures then proposed would eventually help New Zealand's economy (especially because NZ economy has been for quite some time having a record unemployment level of around 3 percent) and the new migrants.
One of the major immigration issues that emanated in the middle of 2019 – much before the beginning of the Covid pandemic – was the delay in partnership visa processing and the perceived biased towards relationships based on the traditional Indian marriages for the purpose of partnership visas.
Here is a list of five important issues that need the new Immigration Minister's urgent, kind, and reasonable consideration.
Fixing partnership visa anomaly
If there is one issue that will need Michael Wood's immediate attention, that will be to address the issue that is largely a creation of this government perpetuating an institutional bias against relationships based on traditional Indian marriages for the purpose of partnership visas.
Wood draws a lot of pride in the fact that he represents New Zealand's most ethnically diverse electorate of Mt Roskill (more than 40 per cent of the constituency were born overseas), and now will be the time to walk the talk and remove the obsolete view of a "partnership" within immigration rules that does not reflect the cultural diversity of an increasingly multicultural New Zealand.
New Zealand's immigration rules only consider two individuals being eligible for a partnership visa only if they are "living together" – and do not reflect the sanctimonious fact in several non-white cultures, including the Indian culture, where "living together" before a legally and culturally approved marriage is not possible.
This issue has resulted in forced family separation for thousands of Kiwi citizens, residents and temporary migrant workers trying to bring their partners into the country.
The Indian Weekender has been leading strong advocacy on this important and sensitive issue for the Kiwi-Indian and the ethnic migrant community for the last couple of years, and it deserves the immediate attention of the new Minister.
Temporary migrants stuck overseas due to NZ's closed borders
So far, Michael Wood – like any other Minister in the government – has been standing rock solid behind other ministers and the cabinet's decision on the plight of temporary migrants stuck overseas due to New Zealand's closed borders.
The Indian Weekender had raised the issue with the Michael Wood on many occasions, including as late as Friday, May 27, asking about the plight of temporary migrants stuck overseas whose visas have expired in the last two years and who have not been offered any avenue to return back into the country.
While the outgoing Immigration Minister was clear that nothing more could be done except what was already done, and there was no pathway considered to allow back thousands of post-study work visa holders who had invested tens of thousands of dollars to study in the country and were living and working in the country when they were suddenly locked out of the country.
New Minister of Immigration Michael Wood had to accept the fact that enough was not done in the last two years of the closed border regime, and there is a need to reconsider the treatment meted out to temporary migrants (particularly those who have been in the country on a study visa before).
Given his special connection with the ethnic communities, there will be huge expectations upon him to understand the plight of such poor temporary migrants who, after investing tens of thousands of dollars in the country, are being snubbed and given the cold shoulder.
They indeed deserve a second and kinder consideration under the new Immigration Minister.
Opening long term visas for parents of new migrants
The third and the most immediately pressing issue that deserves the new Immigration Minister's urgent attention is an issue that has been lying dormant for the last two years of the Covid pandemic when borders were closed for everyone other than citizens and residents of the country – the issue of long-term visas of parents.
Till 2016, new migrants in NZ were allowed to bring their old parents from overseas into the country – a long-existing strategy to attract skilled migrant workers into the country – which by anecdotal accounts of many temporary migrants was a decisive factor in their respective choices of NZ over other countries from global west for emigrating.
The previous National government had put a temporary suspension on the category feeling the heat of the then-forthcoming elections and the growing rhetoric of the so-called "unsustainable net immigration numbers" and to earn some brownie points.
Under the pressure of growing demand from a vast segment of skilled migrant workers who have been living globe-trotting life in recent years, leaving their old parents behind in their respective countries of origin, and were desperate to have the ability to bring their old parents along with them, the Labour government did open the "parent visa category" – but not before introducing almost absurd requirements which literally meant that a majority of working-class migrant workers would not qualify to sponsor their parent's visa.
While the category still remains closed due to Covid-related border closure, when it will eventually open after border opening, the requirement for a Kiwi worker to bring his one parent from overseas is to earn $169,000 (for an individual worker $105,000) and to bring both parents Kiwi worker had to earn $212,000.
There was a huge hue and cry from a vast segment of relatively new migrants in the country who suddenly found the "goalpost" changed and making the category highly elitist in nature that will allow parents of only super-rich people.
There is a huge undercurrent of frustration within a large chunk of new migrants of the country who found the Labour government's decision a hit on the gut and completely unexpected from a kind and compassionate Labour government.
While the migrant communities remain absolutely mindful of the changing global conditions and NZ's interests, including avoiding any extra costs on the public exchequer (in the form of free public health to be offered to old parents in future), their demands have evolved to the demand of allowing "long term parent visas" thereby leaving the cost of any public health on the migrants who want to bring their parents from overseas.
It is now being argued that a "long-term parent visas" will allow skilled migrant workers to bring their old parents and provide them care in their old age while they continue to live and work in New Zealand and bear all expenses of their care and are struggling to comprehend why the government remains stubborn and not being considerate to allow such a visa while other comparable countries of the global west (such as Canada, Australia) continue to do so.
If Michael Wood is able to delve upon these three most pressing immigration-related issues facing the migrant communities, then he would definitely be able to do what his two immediate predecessors were not able to do – leave behind a proud legacy.
And nothing in these issues compromises NZ's interests as is largely perceived and projected in any public debate around immigration.
Indian Weekender extends best wishes to the new Immigration Minister, Michael Wood.
The incoming Minister of Immigration Michael Wood, will have to hit the ground running from the word go as he inherits not only one of the most difficult portfolios in the government but is also expected to put his already immense popularity within the ethnic communities on the line as the new...
The incoming Minister of Immigration Michael Wood, will have to hit the ground running from the word go as he inherits not only one of the most difficult portfolios in the government but is also expected to put his already immense popularity within the ethnic communities on the line as the new Minister of Immigration.
There is absolutely no denial of the fact that the immigration portfolio has been, till now the Achilles' heel of this sixth Labour government, with the two immediate previous ministers being known for their failures to be on top of the issues fronting the portfolio regardless of the self-patting by the government's promotion machinery.
Ever since this government stormed into the power in 2017 and in its second term in 2020, the department of immigration has been inundated with several teething issues emanating from both – the government's ideological obsession and the department's own bureaucratic mangles and inefficiency – in the process serving neither the country now the new migrants lining up at the borders to work and live in the country.
Since 2017 the government has been committed to drastically reducing incoming migrant workers into the country, particularly the "low-skilled migrant workers" – a term coined under the labour government and the number of international students – particularly in level 5 and level 6 courses.
Although many experts, including economists, businesses and immigration-related, have been apprehensive if the radical measures then proposed would eventually help New Zealand's economy (especially because NZ economy has been for quite some time having a record unemployment level of around 3 percent) and the new migrants.
One of the major immigration issues that emanated in the middle of 2019 – much before the beginning of the Covid pandemic – was the delay in partnership visa processing and the perceived biased towards relationships based on the traditional Indian marriages for the purpose of partnership visas.
Here is a list of five important issues that need the new Immigration Minister's urgent, kind, and reasonable consideration.
Fixing partnership visa anomaly
If there is one issue that will need Michael Wood's immediate attention, that will be to address the issue that is largely a creation of this government perpetuating an institutional bias against relationships based on traditional Indian marriages for the purpose of partnership visas.
Wood draws a lot of pride in the fact that he represents New Zealand's most ethnically diverse electorate of Mt Roskill (more than 40 per cent of the constituency were born overseas), and now will be the time to walk the talk and remove the obsolete view of a "partnership" within immigration rules that does not reflect the cultural diversity of an increasingly multicultural New Zealand.
New Zealand's immigration rules only consider two individuals being eligible for a partnership visa only if they are "living together" – and do not reflect the sanctimonious fact in several non-white cultures, including the Indian culture, where "living together" before a legally and culturally approved marriage is not possible.
This issue has resulted in forced family separation for thousands of Kiwi citizens, residents and temporary migrant workers trying to bring their partners into the country.
The Indian Weekender has been leading strong advocacy on this important and sensitive issue for the Kiwi-Indian and the ethnic migrant community for the last couple of years, and it deserves the immediate attention of the new Minister.
Temporary migrants stuck overseas due to NZ's closed borders
So far, Michael Wood – like any other Minister in the government – has been standing rock solid behind other ministers and the cabinet's decision on the plight of temporary migrants stuck overseas due to New Zealand's closed borders.
The Indian Weekender had raised the issue with the Michael Wood on many occasions, including as late as Friday, May 27, asking about the plight of temporary migrants stuck overseas whose visas have expired in the last two years and who have not been offered any avenue to return back into the country.
While the outgoing Immigration Minister was clear that nothing more could be done except what was already done, and there was no pathway considered to allow back thousands of post-study work visa holders who had invested tens of thousands of dollars to study in the country and were living and working in the country when they were suddenly locked out of the country.
New Minister of Immigration Michael Wood had to accept the fact that enough was not done in the last two years of the closed border regime, and there is a need to reconsider the treatment meted out to temporary migrants (particularly those who have been in the country on a study visa before).
Given his special connection with the ethnic communities, there will be huge expectations upon him to understand the plight of such poor temporary migrants who, after investing tens of thousands of dollars in the country, are being snubbed and given the cold shoulder.
They indeed deserve a second and kinder consideration under the new Immigration Minister.
Opening long term visas for parents of new migrants
The third and the most immediately pressing issue that deserves the new Immigration Minister's urgent attention is an issue that has been lying dormant for the last two years of the Covid pandemic when borders were closed for everyone other than citizens and residents of the country – the issue of long-term visas of parents.
Till 2016, new migrants in NZ were allowed to bring their old parents from overseas into the country – a long-existing strategy to attract skilled migrant workers into the country – which by anecdotal accounts of many temporary migrants was a decisive factor in their respective choices of NZ over other countries from global west for emigrating.
The previous National government had put a temporary suspension on the category feeling the heat of the then-forthcoming elections and the growing rhetoric of the so-called "unsustainable net immigration numbers" and to earn some brownie points.
Under the pressure of growing demand from a vast segment of skilled migrant workers who have been living globe-trotting life in recent years, leaving their old parents behind in their respective countries of origin, and were desperate to have the ability to bring their old parents along with them, the Labour government did open the "parent visa category" – but not before introducing almost absurd requirements which literally meant that a majority of working-class migrant workers would not qualify to sponsor their parent's visa.
While the category still remains closed due to Covid-related border closure, when it will eventually open after border opening, the requirement for a Kiwi worker to bring his one parent from overseas is to earn $169,000 (for an individual worker $105,000) and to bring both parents Kiwi worker had to earn $212,000.
There was a huge hue and cry from a vast segment of relatively new migrants in the country who suddenly found the "goalpost" changed and making the category highly elitist in nature that will allow parents of only super-rich people.
There is a huge undercurrent of frustration within a large chunk of new migrants of the country who found the Labour government's decision a hit on the gut and completely unexpected from a kind and compassionate Labour government.
While the migrant communities remain absolutely mindful of the changing global conditions and NZ's interests, including avoiding any extra costs on the public exchequer (in the form of free public health to be offered to old parents in future), their demands have evolved to the demand of allowing "long term parent visas" thereby leaving the cost of any public health on the migrants who want to bring their parents from overseas.
It is now being argued that a "long-term parent visas" will allow skilled migrant workers to bring their old parents and provide them care in their old age while they continue to live and work in New Zealand and bear all expenses of their care and are struggling to comprehend why the government remains stubborn and not being considerate to allow such a visa while other comparable countries of the global west (such as Canada, Australia) continue to do so.
If Michael Wood is able to delve upon these three most pressing immigration-related issues facing the migrant communities, then he would definitely be able to do what his two immediate predecessors were not able to do – leave behind a proud legacy.
And nothing in these issues compromises NZ's interests as is largely perceived and projected in any public debate around immigration.
Indian Weekender extends best wishes to the new Immigration Minister, Michael Wood.
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