My company is now an accredited employer

[qtf]

Kia ora koutou,

The situation I'm in is really peculiar, so I'm here to seek different opinions!

I am an essential skills visa holder with a permanent offer and the visa is valid until Sep 2020 (three years).
My company has recently become accredited (!)
My company is one of the Polytechnic which is proposed to be merged with the other ITPs
I will be able to reach 160 points threshold next year
I still need to do a new ielts because my IELTS marks have expired

Do you think it's worthwhile checking with HR to see what's a potential contract renewal they'll be able to do for me?

Any thoughts or insights would be really appreciated.

Thank you!

[JandM]

I don't understand what a difference in your contract would make to your visa situation. Is it support for a new visa that you are hoping for? From what you've said, it sounds as though you are in a solid situation at the moment, with an employer who wants to keep you long-term, and a visa which allows you to wait to be eligible for residence under SMC. The fact that your employer is becoming accredited would mean, presumably, that they could support you for a work-to-residence visa such as https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...-visa#criteria, which would have a direct path to residence, rather than the separate SMC application.

[qtf]

Hi @JandM,

I definitely worded my struggle in a more confusing way. Thank you for your patience.

There's a possibility that my company will be merged into a new institution fairly quickly, and I wonder if that makes the going down work to residency (WTR) path even more dangerous than staying on my essential skills visa due to the 'company' isn't technically existed.

I do want to make a call to immigration to ask what it means for the essential visa holders when the employer is now accredited - does that mean I can do a variation of condition and get the WTR...if not consider the government might change things really fast.

Will share their answer once got them!

[JandM]

I do want to make a call to immigration to ask what it means for the essential visa holders when the employer is now accredited - does that mean I can do a variation of condition and get the WTR...if not consider the government might change things really fast.

Those two visas are entirely different. If you wanted the one instead of the other, you would have to make a separate application and meet the requirements. It's NOT just a matter of a VOC.

I wonder if that makes the going down work to residency (WTR) path even more dangerous than staying on my essential skills visa due to the 'company' isn't technically existed.

I can understand the feeling of uncertainty, but nobody can read the future and tell you exactly what WILL happen. 'Dangerous'? - I don't think so. (Please notice, this is just my thinking, nothing official.) While you are on the work visa, if the merger happens and the new body wants to keep your services, you would have to apply for a VOC because of the new name for the employer, or a new visa if there is enough change in the terms or place of employment. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...c-are-changing If you change soon to a WTR, under the present company, and the merger went through that would still be the case, but you would already have clocked up some time out of the two years on the WTR required to move on to residence from work - even if someone changes their job on a WTR, to another WTR for another accredited employer to do a similarly eligible job, ALL the skilled work for whichever accredited employer is counted, as long as they got a VOC for the move. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...-resident-visa So, while it looks as though you may have to take some steps regarding alterations to whatever visa you hold at the time, if the merger goes through, there are procedures in place that should let you do that, although don't forget that every new application for an Essential Skills visa, even for the same position, requires the applicant to meet the requirements again, and the employer to justify again employing THAT foreign worker (even though he's known and giving satisfaction) rather than a NZ national or resident.