It was about two months back and during the final post-Cabinet news conference on December 12, 2022, that then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and current Immigration Minister Michael Wood gave a piece of good news to many Post Study Work Visa (PSWV) holders who were stuck offshore due to the Covid-19 border closure in 2020.
Wood announced the government’s decision to provide a 12-month Open Work Visa for approximately 1,800 people with valid post-study work visas who missed out because of the border closure during the pandemic. These people had been demanding the Government for a long to have some pathway for them to return to New Zealand.
After this announcement in December, finally this week, Immigration NZ sent letters to the eligible migrants confirming that their visas be effective from March 30'2023 and that they can enter NZ between March 30'2023 and September 29' 2023 (inclusive) and the visa will be valid for 12 months once they arrive onshore.
Indian Weekender spoke to a few post-study work visa holders who have got their confirmations to know how excited they are about coming back to NZ.
One such migrant is Charanjeet Singh, who is currently in Chandigarh after getting stuck in India due to the border closure. He travelled to India in January 2020 to meet his ailing mother, who had undergone heart surgery and had his flights booked for NZ for March 28' 2020. However, the NZ border closed suddenly a week prior due to the global pandemic shattering all his plans and putting his life at a standstill.
He says, "After receiving the mail, I was elated, but later somehow I didn't feel bad for many others who are still left out like those on other visa categories such as student, Essential skills or partnership and got stuck for no fault of theirs. NZ govt should do justice to them as well.”
He also points out that it is unfair that because government decided to close borders that left them stranded, these people were lost out from the RV21 residency. “I am grateful that they extended our visas, but I am not sure in one year what we will be able to achieve as they keep changing their policies from time to time. I hope the NZ govt will understand our pain deeply and will give us a fair chance to apply under RV21 and will allow the other migrants who are still stuck offshore," says Singh
Another heart-touching story is of Tamara Kearney, who went to India in January 2020 as her father was in the hospital and unfortunately passed away in May 2020. She completed a Level 8 course in Business Studies from Massey University in 2018. Before flying to India, she worked in the admin department of Chorus. As the border closed, all her plans went for a toss, forcing her to stay in Bangalore. Talking to Indian Weekender, she said, "I am very excited after returning to NZ, but at the same time, I am very anxious as we have only one year to get our lives back on track in NZ. There is so much to do in this one year.”
Gaurav Narayan, another PSWV holder stuck in India since March 9' 2020, is also sailing in the same boat. Sharing his views from Udaipur, Rajasthan, he says, "It was pretty challenging to stay offshore where the only decision we took was to visit our families during the Covid-19 pandemic. It was heartbreaking to stay away from work and friends during this period. We even lost the golden opportunity of applying for permanent residency under RV21. Now the plan is to return and work hard to achieve the goals in NZ."
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