Confused about fees!

[parpalhou]

Hello,

My husband has just been offered a job in NZ and I have just started looking up information about the visa process, and I find it a bit overwhelming! I had no idea the costs were so high. Can someone tell me how the fees process works - I've seen that we need to pay for the EOI and then for the SMC application, but as I have a child with a disability on the list of medical conditions that require a waiver, I am concerned we will not qualify, and I wouldn't like to lose that amount of money! Do we pay the fee after we have received the medical waiver, or does the medical assessment and waiver process take place once the 1600 GBP have already been paid? Thanks for your help.

[JandM]

The fee paid with the EOI, then the ITA, is not a fee to buy a visa, but a fee to have the case investigated and processed. If you put in your application and it is eventually refused, there is no refund.

[bulu]

There alot of money to pay out. These were my costs :

1) EOI Fees
2) Medical Fees
3) Document Costs
4) Certified by Rotary costs
5) IELTS Exam Fees
6) Passport Photographs costs
7) Translation costs
7) Courier Costs
8) ITA Fees
9) Document Return Charges

And when (IF) it it approved :
10) Courier costs
11) Visa Costs
12) Migrant Support Costs
13) Passport Return Costs

Then the major expenses start : Plane Ticket, Accommodation, Car, .............

[parpalhou]

Thanks for the list! To be honest, I'm a little shocked by the fees. I have been griping about the fees I paid to immigrate to France but now I realize it was nothing compared to NZ, and here you don't pay until you pick up the residence card. I believe that we will receive help with the fees as part of the recruitment package, but I'm nervous about advancing these amounts since there is a possibility my 3-year-old daughter will not be approved by the MA. Maybe I'll have to look into New Caledonia instead

[JandM]

It sounds as if your first action needs to be to find out for certain if the prospective employer offers to pay the visa fees.

You could then do some research online on NZ medical waivers for the condition your daughter has, to get some idea of the likelihood of its being granted. I hear that some condition-based help groups in NZ can be helpful with advice for those wanting to immigrate with a person affected.

I'm surprised at your surprise at having to pay to put your application through. It would be the same situation for a lot of places if you were wanting, as a foreigner, to come in to live and work.

[parpalhou]

I'm just surprised at the amount they ask for up front. I guess it's because the process for permanent residency is streamlined compared to how it is in some other countries, so you pay a lump sum at the beginning rather than paying every few years. I'm not complaining - I think every country has the right to ask whatever they want for people who want to come in. I'm just realizing that I've had no right to gripe about the fees I've been paying in the EU for the past 5 years, because they're not nearly as exorbitant as I thought they were.

Anyway, I will get in touch with the help groups you mentioned - that's a good idea.

[newarrival]

But if you have to pay fees in regular intervals in other countries, wouldn't that add up, too? Apart from the fact that it is a hassle....

[parpalhou]

Yes, of course.