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Immigration reset : Govt to curb reliance on temporary visas, target wealthy investors Mon, 17 May 2021, 6:02PM
Economic Development Minister Stuart Nash said New Zealand had become too reliant on low-skilled overseas workers. (Photo / George Heard)
Immigration reset : Govt to curb reliance on temporary visas, target wealthy investors Mon, 17 May 2021, 6:02PM
Wealthy investors and highly-skilled workers will be the targets of New Zealand s Covid-19 immigration reset to reduce the economy s reliance on low-wage migrant workers.
In a speech setting out the Government s intentions for immigration policy, Economic Development Minister Stuart Nash said that would include making it harder for employers to take on workers from overseas, other than in areas of genuine skills shortages.
Government announces reset of immigration system Monday, May 17, 2021 RNZ
The skilled migrant category will be reviewed and employer requirements strengthened as part of what the government calls a once-in-a generation reset of the immigration system.
Tourism Minister Stuart Nash - standing in for Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi, who was unwell - made the speech this evening.
He conceded there were no new announcements in speech tonight, saying instead that it set the direction of travel. There has been ad hoc announcements here and there, he said. As far as I m aware we ve never had a scene-setting speech about immigration, talking about the whole work programme that is in place and what we are looking to do in a post-Covid world.
The pressure we have seen on housing and infrastructure in recent years means we need to get ahead of population growth.
The government would strengthen employer requirements and labour market tests before a migrant could be hired so temporary workers were only recruited for genuine job shortages.
The skilled migrant category would also be reviewed, he said.
New border exemptions would allow 200 high-value investors to travel to New Zealand in the next year to see if they wanted to invest.
The tourism industry would also be scrutinised to look at lifting industry standards and to encourage innovation and improvements. The exploitation of temporary migrant workers - such as paying less than the minimum wage or making people work excessive hours - is unacceptable and breaches New Zealand law, Nash said.
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