Is it appropriate?

[5forNZ]

Skywatcher, we'd LOVE to be able to take a trip out and tackle all of those things you mentioned...but it just isn't financially possible today.

We've thought about submitting our EOI without the job offer. In fact, life would be so much easier if we could just get PR without the job offer as employers are probably more likely to offer a job when we have PR in hand and things would likely line up smoother (i.e. less stress!). According to the point checker though, we'll have only 115 if we did that. Would it would be worth it to submit an EOI with that many points? (With a job offer we're at 175 points, thus more or less "guaranteed".)

Maybe we need more clarification on the process...? If we submit our EOI sans job offer, and we do not get accepted in the next draw, do we sit in the pool until we are accepted? Or do we have to reapply (and pay the fee) over and over? And if we do end up sitting in the pool until accepted, but a prospective employer eventually offers a job, will our point value change? (I swear I have read the Immigration site front to back and I still feel uneducated!)

Anyhow, worth mentioning that DH did go ahead and contact the company he is most interested in working for via email, very casually, CV attached. They just got back to us and implied they'd be interested. Indicated there'd be a 3 week trial period, though. Asked to be informed as we went along. That's good news, right??

[Manks]

We've thought about submitting our EOI without the job offer. In fact, life would be so much easier if we could just get PR without the job offer as employers are probably more likely to offer a job when we have PR in hand and things would likely line up smoother (i.e. less stress!). According to the point checker though, we'll have only 115 if we did that. Would it would be worth it to submit an EOI with that many points? (With a job offer we're at 175 points, thus more or less "guaranteed".)

If you got a job offer in Auckland you'd have 50 bonus points, well clear of the 140-point milestone, so you'd be pulled from the pool at the next selection date and processed from there. You'd get 60 bonus points if your offer was outside Auckland (or at least that was the bonus structure when we applied).

Maybe we need more clarification on the process...? If we submit our EOI sans job offer, and we do not get accepted in the next draw, do we sit in the pool until we are accepted? Or do we have to reapply (and pay the fee) over and over? And if we do end up sitting in the pool until accepted, but a prospective employer eventually offers a job, will our point value change? (I swear I have read the Immigration site front to back and I still feel uneducated!)

Youe EOI woild sit in the pool until either a) you met the under-140-points selection criteria, which does change with every draw, but has become more stringent lately and you're unlikley to be selected unless your job is on the LTSSL. Or b) you got a job offer and amended your EOI to bump the points above 140. If neither of these things happen, your EOI will expire after 6 months and you'd have to reapply and pay another application fee.

My experience was similar to yours except we only had 105 points. I submitted the EOI in the hope that I'd get that elusive job offer but it never came and my EOI expired. Then guess what? I got a job offer about a month later! Sod's law. But I'd already decided I wasn't going to submit another EOI until I had a job offer so we didn't keep throwing money down the drain.

Anyhow, worth mentioning that DH did go ahead and contact the company he is most interested in working for via email, very casually, CV attached. They just got back to us and implied they'd be interested. Indicated there'd be a 3 week trial period, though. Asked to be informed as we went along. That's good news, right??

Good news but I'd be careful about whether this could be regarded as a job offer in INZ's eyes given the trial period.

Fingers crossed!

[5forNZ]

Manks, that trial period is also what trips me up. I am not sure how INZ would perceive that, either...Thank you SO much for clarifying the EOI process, though! We are looking at Wellington and surrounding area...thus the 60 point difference.

Hm, seems we should figure out what constitutes a job offer - does anyone have experience with a trial period situation and how INZ responds to that? Will INZ tell me if I contact them directly?

Still not comfortable with trying for PR without 140+ points...

[Manks]

The job offer has to be an offer of permanent employment, or at the very least in excess of 12 months. The initial job I was talking to Air NZ about could have been a 9-12 month contract, but I wasn't sure that would be enough to get me residency. I have a feeling (note a feeling, no proof) that INZ are getting stricter in their application processes/criteria so if you were offered a contract position, rather than permanent employment, there's potential that you might get offered WTR, but I don't have experience of this, it's more of an assumption/guess.

There is a now standard 90-day "trial period" in legislation which means any job could come to an end in that period. So in reality, the company doesn't need to specify a three-week trial period as you're essentially on trial for the first three months by law!

Don't forget that if you apply with a job offer, you have to prove you've been in that job, or a similarly skilled one, for three months within your first six months in country, otherwise your residency will expire.

[Beachcombers]

Have you considered a WHV? Reading one of your previous post, you are both in your 20's, which means potentially your partner can apply for a WHV, which means he can enter the country, start employment, get a permanent job offer from his employer and submit your EOI.

At which point the rest of the family can come over. Worth considering?

[5forNZ]

Manks, now that you say that, I do recall reading somewhere about the "in excess of 12 months" thing. If we were offered WTR instead, would the kids be able to go to school in NZ without being considered International Students?

Beachcomber, obviously it's not an ideal situation, but if we could support him living there and us living here at the same time, we would consider that...however financially we don't think it's possible.