Temporary Work Visa - Essential Skill ISSL

[tashla]

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum and firstly just wanted to say thanks for all the useful information and support provided here.

Anyway, about a week ago I saw a job advertised in NZ and thought it would be suitable for my partner and myself. I am an Australian citizen, so no problems there, but my partner is Turkish. So I was browsing NZ Immigrating website and noticed that our job was listed on the Immediate Skills Shortage List (ISSL; ANZSCO Skill Level 3) which made my Turkish partner eligible for a temporary work visa under the Essential Skills Work Category. After realising this I sent off an application to the employer and have since been offered a verbal job offer.

So now I'm in the process of trying to organise the visa application for my partner. It's all happening very fast and it seems a bit daunting, so I was just curious if anyone has been down this road before and could describe their experience.

I guess the first thing now is to get the Offer of Employment in writing and also get Form INZ1113 - Employer Supplementary Form filled out and posted to us (we're in Turkey at the moment).

Then we will need to gather up evidence of experience/qualifications, complete a medical, get a police check and of course fill out Form INZ1015 - Work Visa Application.

Does this seem about right so far? Am I missing anything?

Any advice or input is appreciated.
Thanks again for this lovely forum
tashla

[katchi]

I think you are right on track. I have had the job offer, supplementary form etc all as an attachment by email and I am going to post all these with the completed form on Monday.

I am not sure how long the London embassy takes to process the application.

[tashla]

I think you are right on track. I have had the job offer, supplementary form etc all as an attachment by email and I am going to post all these with the completed form on Monday.

I am not sure how long the London embassy takes to process the application.

Can you send emailed copies of the Offer of Employment and Supplementary Form or do you need to send originals? I was searching through the forum and it seemed to me that you needed to provide the original signed Offer and Form to Immigration... Can someone please clarify this?

The London website currently states that something like 87% of applications are processed in 2 weeks, so hopefully you will get a fast turn-around.

Good luck with your application

[katchi]

I am sending only emailed copies to the embassy. There are mixed messages in the immigration website. At one place it says except for the passport, do not send any other originals and they would not be returned. I am optimistic that the employers who routinely recruit from abroad will be aware of of what is required etc.

[tashla]

I am sending only emailed copies to the embassy. There are mixed messages in the immigration website. At one place it says except for the passport, do not send any other originals and they would not be returned. I am optimistic that the employers who routinely recruit from abroad will be aware of of what is required etc.

Okay, can you please let me know how if goes and if there is a request for originals. I have read a number of people were initially informed that copies were acceptable but then later required to submit originals, but maybe this was only for people applying for PR and not temporary visas.

I received the job offer today via email and also a draft copy of the employment contract. Since the employment contract outlines the specific duties and responsibilities, the job offer only really states a very generic job title and duties. I'm assuming this will mean that I should submit the contract to immigration along with the job offer as they will want the complete details, but will the contract be required to be complete and signed by both parties? It's a little hard to complete fully at the moment because the commencement date is dependent on visa processing times and is just stated on the job offer as "as soon as you arrive in NZ". Do you think I can just submit the draft employment contract to show all the details of pay/duties etc and the official job offer? Or should I either get a new job offer with everything outlined or get the employment contract completed?

[tashla]

Ah... I'm getting mixed information from INZ...

I emailed INZ regarding my previous post about submitting a draft copy of the contract with a letter of offer but then before receiving a reply I discussed it with the employer and they rang them. INZ told them that it would be fine to submit the draft copy and that it did not need to be completed and signed.

Now I've finally got an email back from INZ but this time they say that the contract needs to be fully completed and signed.

Which one should I listen to? I wish the department could agree on things like this so I could get a straight answer. I guess the safest thing is to submit a completed and signed contract with the letter of offer...?

[rashvk]

Hi tashla

We sent originals and one self attested copy of all originals.
They retained the attested copies and returned the originals to us.
Since you have a job offer i guess you should be dealt with a different Priority say 2 weeks maximum time.
Hope it helps

Good Luck
Rashvk

[tashla]

Sent off the visa application via courier yesterday. Courier advised it was delivered today, but haven't heard from INZ yet...

Ended up getting the employment agreement completed and signed and sent the original off with the original letter of offer. Decided it was the best thing to do to avoid any delays in processing.

Fingers crossed for a quick grant. Will let you all know how it goes...

[JandM]

Good luck. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

[tashla]

Okay, so since the submission of the application all we've received from INZ is emails to register for the online services. Obviously the application has been received as my credit card has been charged and the status online is "decision: pending".

Should we have received some kind of "acknowledgement letter"? Is this usually sent via snail mail or email? The thing is, the Turkish postal system is really slow and unreliable, so I'm stressing that they may have sent a letter which we may never receive. The INZ website states that this letter may also ask for addition information or documents (if required) so I'm worried that not having this letter may be delaying our processing times. I know it's only been a week but do you think I should contact INZ and check that everything is in order? Or do INZ normally email as well so if I haven't received an email I can assume they don't need anything else at this time?

Is there an email address for the London branch? I found skilledmigrantslondon@dol.govt.nz on these forums but since the application is for a temporary visa can I use it? I would really prefer to send an email instead of phone since the application is in my partners name and his English isn't 100% so he stresses out having to make these sorts of calls.