Apply for permanent residence and work permit in parallel?

[frant182]

Hi!

I've got a skilled job offer and I already applied for the permanent residence under the skilled migrant category. Last week I received the invitation to apply. :-)

My prospect employer wants me to start the new job as early as possible, which means January 1st 2015. But now I'm concerned that the visa process will take too long. Most I my documents are prepared, but I still have to wait for specific documents about 3-4 weeks from now. So I'm afraid that everything will be too tight timewise.

Now I'm wondering if i can/should start the application for a work permit (work to residence) in parallel. Would this maybe cause any conflicts/disadvantages with my running application for permanent residence?

Many thanks in advance for your assistance!

[Karen Phillips]

Hi. No problem whatsoever in applying for a work visa while you wait for your residence (NB - Permanent residence comes later in 2 years). It won't cause any problems. You will need to include a cover letter explaining that you are in the process of preparing your SMC application after receiving your ITA. Make sure you get a second certified copy of anything you will need for both applications. For a work visa, I would tend to send in my actual passport rather than a certified copy - saves time. If you get a certified copy made first, you can submit this with your SMC, as you won't need the original until the SMC is approved in principle and you are asked to pay the migrant levy. Congratulations on your progress so far!

[frant182]

Hi Karen,

many thanks for your quick response and clarification! So I will apply for a "Work to Residence" visa in parallel. I assume the limitation of the work visa (restricted the specific employer and job) will become obsolete as soon as the SMC application is approved, right?

And can my wife only apply for a work visa when my work visa has been approved? Or can she also start this application now in parallel to the SMC?

Many thanks again!

[Karen Phillips]

Hi. Yes, the restrictions on who you can work for will change when you get your residence. When your residence is "Approved in Principle", I suggest you wait until you have been in your new job for 3 months or longer and then pay the migrant levy and get the visa inserted into your passports. This way, there will be no Section 49 Conditions requiring you to work for a specific employer. Your wife's application for a partnership-based work visa can, and ideally should, be submitted at the same time as your work visa application.

[frant182]

Many thanks for the answer!

I've got one more question regarding the required police certificate(s), because the statements on the INZ website are a bit confusing to me. The situation is as follows:

My wife has the German and the South African citizenship, but she left South Africa in 1997 at the age of 17 and since then hasn’t lived there anymore. In the ITA it is explicitly mentioned that she has to provide police certifcates from all countries of citizenship for the permanant residence, i.e. also South Africa. (it takes about 3-4 weeks until the South African police certificate is issued, which gives me a headache )

But on the INZ website I also find the following info regarding the required police certificates: "if you are applying for a temporary entry visa: any country you’ve lived in for 5 or more years since turning 17."

So my understanding is that she only needs the German police certificate for the (temporary) work visa , because this is the only country she lived in for 5 or more years since turning 17. Or am I wrong? Does she also need the South African certifcate for the partnership-based work visa (this would delay the application for several weeks )?

[Karen Phillips]

Hi. You are spot on! For residence, she wil need the South African police check too - and yes, this takes a while. If she is in NZ I am fairly sure that the larger Post Shops have a fingerprint service - but I am sure there are other Forum members who have experience of this.

The great news is that for a temporary visa she will only need the German Poice Check.