Job ads that say "Must have Permanent Residency?"

Well after finally getting my partnership-based residency visa, we've moved to Christchurch. Been looking for a job for a month with not much luck.

Anyway, usually job ads will say something like "Applicants for this position should have NZ residency or a valid NZ work visa or be an NZ citizen." Which is fine, since I'm a resident.

But then other jobs will say something like "must have permanent resident status or NZ citizenship." Often jobs that don't mention this on the job description will have an online form where the only options are "NZ Citizen" or "Permanent Resident." If I put anything else like "Other," it asks me for a visa expiration date. But my resident visa doesn't have an expiration date so I can't even complete the form.

A while ago I even saw an online job ad for Immigration New Zealand that said only citizens and permanent residents could apply!!!

Now, the INZ site says this of Resident visas: "You can work in any occupation for any employer in New Zealand." Seems pretty simple and straightforward.

https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...-resident-visa

I've done a bit of googling to see if there's any kind of employability difference between Resident and PR visas and I haven't seen anything. I did see an old topic here where JandM said that Resident visas used to be called something like "Permanent Resident with Travel Conditions" and PR was called something like "Permanent Resident without Travel Conditions"....so I'm wondering if some employers just don't understand the difference between Resident and Permanent Resident, which from what I can see should only be a difference in travel conditions and NOT employment conditions.

So basically my question is, can employers legally discriminate against Resident visa holders in favor of Permanent Residency holders, or is it just a misunderstanding on their part?

I realize that employers can do whatever they want with an application, and I suppose they might assume that Residents wouldn't be as likely to stay in NZ long-term, but it seems odd to me that in public job ads they would state a visa preference that doesn't sound exactly legal. And it really seems odd that even a job ad for INZ would state this preference. Are there any legal rules or documentation that says that employers can refuse to hire Residents or state a refusal to hire them?

I am not a expert but

the terms 'resident' and 'permanent resident' are only in the scope of immigration purposes and describes the current situation based on the Immigration Act 2009.

your Resident visa doesn't expires and for the general public / institutions / companies you are a Resident

That's what I would think, that Permanent Resident and Resident should only be terms to distinguish between the immigration travel conditions, and not employability.

Yet I keep seeing job ads that say "permanent resident or citizen only."

For employment purposes, am I technically a "permanent resident?"

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fltonz

Well after finally getting my partnership-based residency visa, we've moved to Christchurch. Been looking for a job for a month with not much luck.

Anyway, usually job ads will say something like "Applicants for this position should have NZ residency or a valid NZ work visa or be an NZ citizen." Which is fine, since I'm a resident.

But then other jobs will say something like "must have permanent resident status or NZ citizenship." Often jobs that don't mention this on the job description will have an online form where the only options are "NZ Citizen" or "Permanent Resident." If I put anything else like "Other," it asks me for a visa expiration date. But my resident visa doesn't have an expiration date so I can't even complete the form.

A while ago I even saw an online job ad for Immigration New Zealand that said only citizens and permanent residents could apply!!!

Now, the INZ site says this of Resident visas: "You can work in any occupation for any employer in New Zealand." Seems pretty simple and straightforward.

https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...-resident-visa

I've done a bit of googling to see if there's any kind of employability difference between Resident and PR visas and I haven't seen anything. I did see an old topic here where JandM said that Resident visas used to be called something like "Permanent Resident with Travel Conditions" and PR was called something like "Permanent Resident without Travel Conditions"....so I'm wondering if some employers just don't understand the difference between Resident and Permanent Resident, which from what I can see should only be a difference in travel conditions and NOT employment conditions.

So basically my question is, can employers legally discriminate against Resident visa holders in favor of Permanent Residency holders, or is it just a misunderstanding on their part?

I realize that employers can do whatever they want with an application, and I suppose they might assume that Residents wouldn't be as likely to stay in NZ long-term, but it seems odd to me that in public job ads they would state a visa preference that doesn't sound exactly legal. And it really seems odd that even a job ad for INZ would state this preference. Are there any legal rules or documentation that says that employers can refuse to hire Residents or state a refusal to hire them?

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If these roles are any sort of government role, for which a security vet is required then they may well be limiting applicants to only those who have Citizenship, or Permanent Residecne.

The INZ one is the only government job I have seen in the past that said PR only.

Here's a bunch of them on Indeed:

https://nz.indeed.com/Permanent-Resi...a99c54dee0d9c1

Some are related to government work but most aren't. Often they say "must be an NZ citizen, hold permanent residency or an open work visa." I guess a Resident visa simply counts as a "work visa" for employment purposes?

Why on earth would you need to be a permanent resident to work as a trainee food processor?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fltonz

The INZ one is the only government job I have seen in the past that said PR only.

Here's a bunch of them on Indeed:

https://nz.indeed.com/Permanent-Resi...a99c54dee0d9c1

Some are related to government work but most aren't. Often they say "must be an NZ citizen, hold permanent residency or an open work visa." I guess a Resident visa simply counts as a "work visa" for employment purposes?

Why on earth would you need to be a permanent resident to work as a trainee food processor?

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Late response but it might help someone -

Used to be called "Permanent residency" but now there is "Residency" and "Permanent Residency". For all purposes including employment there is no difference. Just a case of employment departments doing cut and paste without knowing much about the current system.

FWIW I applied anyway without either type of residency and got a essential skills visa when i needed it. Have to help them out sometimes by ticking the boxes that the computer requires.

Tick yes to the "permanent" resident option and apply. They can't toss you in prison :)

I was just wondering the same! Great help folks. Yes, it didn't make much sense. Plus those with vetting clearance also specify nationality and Only from a commonwealth or USA country and you must have lived there for 10years or more for vetting purposes which has I understand but a few other ads simply looks like copy and paste.
Thanks