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Thread: ESV to Accredited Employer

  1. #1
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    Default ESV to Accredited Employer

    Hi guys, I'm currently on Essential Skills Visa and have recently been offered a job by an accredited employer. My partner is on my partnership visa.

    My current company that I am with is currently going through restructuring. I will be submitting my Talent work visa application next week.

    1) My current company has plans of making 2 roles redundant and since I've accepted the accredited job offer today(16th Aug), I plan to resign so that he will only have to make 1 role redundant and potentially save 1 of my colleagues job. My current employer has hinted to me today that he would have to make me redundant/disestablished my role and wants a response from me early next week, before he can have a 1-1 meeting with the individual employees on the outcome of the restructuring.

    I have plans to submit my talent work visa early next week.

    I would like to find out if I were to resign, once my talent work visa is submitted - Would I be on interim?

    2) Would my partner still remain on the same partnership visa or would his visa be affected during this period?

    Appreciate if anyone has any clue on this situation. Thanks!!
    Last edited by redbells; 16th August 2019 at 10:30 PM.

  2. #2
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    Aug 2019
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    Hi redbells

    I was in almost the exact same position 2 years ago. I can give you the run down of how it worked for me...

    I came over on Essential skills and worked for that company for 2 months, I then accepted a job offer from an Accredited Employer and applied for WTR visa. At the time I enquired about my partners open visa and I was told I do not need to change hers as her visa was approved based on her relationship to me and not linked to a job. I dont believe you will receive an interim work visa so I would strongly recommend that you do NOT resign until you have your WTR visa approved.

    Good luck

    CalR

  3. #3
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    Feb 2008
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    An interim visa can be issued by INZ if they have not finished processing an application by the time the applicant's previous visa runs out, not under other circumstances (such as you suggest, you MAKING your previous visa invalid by resigning). Even if you got an interim visa (which you wouldn't), it wouldn't allow you to keep working, because you would be applying for a different type of temporary work visa from what you had before.

    Excuse me, CalR - I believe that any partner-sponsored open work visa is connected to the work visa number held by their partner, so if the original work visa becomes invalid or is superseded by a new kind of temporary visa, the partner also needs to apply for a new partner-sponsored visa. They can apply at the same time as the partner, with a covering letter linking the applications, then INZ will work it as one case, supplying information not known to begin with, such as the visa number, as it becomes available.

  4. #4
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    May 2017
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    Hi CaIR and JandM, thank you for your response. Appreciate it.

    From what I understand from the above, I would not be on an interim visa as resigning and visa running out are 2 different situations. I am in quite a tough spot as my employer would like my resignation early next week. My colleagues have thrown me under the bus, and they're all pushing to get rid of myself and another lady to protect their jobs. There is probably an employment breach here if I was forced to resign - I am also seeking independent HR's advice. However, I am also worried that if I do not give a response to my employer on Monday, he may terminate me - which I can go for personal grievance if necessary but really don't want to.


    Do you know what sort of visa can I apply for to cover me legally while I my talent work visa is being processed?

    I am also worried about my partner's visa since if I am not allowed to work, we will be depending solely on his income. Does this imply that when I apply for my talent work visa, I would have to apply for his partnership visa again? Since he will be applying for the same visa, I believe his conditions would still be open work visa?

    I have contacted the immigration advisor that my new employer has provided - but she's away on sick leave, her colleagues are supposed to ring me back but that didn't happen.
    I have also contacted the immigration advisor that I've been using this whole time - but she's on lunch break and forgot to ring me back.

    I wasn't able to get advice yesterday from both immigration advisors

    Thank you guys

  5. #5
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    Feb 2008
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    The situation with your being leant on to resign, or if your employer fired you, would come under NZ employment law. https://www.govt.nz/browse/work/work...oblem-at-work/ There are some links on this page that may be helpful. Also, the NZ Citizens' Advice Bureau can be useful to talk to. https://www.cab.org.nz/ Besides the legal requirements for redundancy (which aren't to be used ONLY for an employer's or other staff's convenience), look at your contract - see what notice period your employer MUST give you. As I understand it, outside any trial period, it's not quick and easy to dismiss an employee in NZ. There have to be very solid reasons, and prior warnings given. You have solid rights under NZ law.

    Do you know what sort of visa can I apply for to cover me legally while I my talent work visa is being processed?
    There isn't any visa made for this situation, unless a person is dismissed within a 90 day trial period. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-...b-visitor-visa

  6. #6
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    May 2017
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    Hi JandM, thank you again for your response. Yes, I managed to speak to one of my licensed HR advisor - he has advised me to not resign under any circumstances. The process is completely flawed as I was not provided any restructuring letter, involved in another meeting nor was I given business days to think about it and have been leant on to resign. These are grounds for personal grievance. As with the current situation, I am distressed with my employment and also my could-be bad visa situation.

    I hope that on Monday I can speak to my accredited employer's LIA and get the ball rolling, and see what visa status I could possibly be in.

    Once again, thank you JandM. Appreciate it.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2019
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    New Zealand
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    As the threat of a restructure looms in my office too I'm looking to options before it becomes a problem. Unfortunately from my understanding of the visas I would need to either vary my conditions to tweak my job title if I get a new offer as nowhere will exactly match my title, or find an accredited employer. Unfortunately time is not your friend in either situation with converting visas before you can start your new job as they can take months to apply for a replacement skills visa at which point you cease to have any entitlement to be in New Zealand when your current employment ends. We do have the option to move my partner to a skills visa and then I become the partner but again time isn't on our side with that one.

    We managed to score a 3 month delay on our restructure and with my skilled migrant application submitted in January I'm really hoping that's over the line before it becomes an issue. Balancing keeping that application being valid along with replacement work visas is a very tough and tricky line to be walking on.

    There's definitely legal ways they have to do things. They've been extremely careful in our office to do it by the book, they've had to consult on it and our team dug our heels in submitting a ton of feedback to say it was a mistake and got the 3 months to prove it to the management. Those that did get redundancy in a sub team were issued full notice periods (actually double their contracted period) to hand off all their work. They can not force you to resign, if they want to make you redundant they need to jump through the appropriate hoops to do it lawfully. Personally I would try and drag it out a bit and get your visa affairs in order before handing in your notice and possibly having to leave the country.

  8. #8
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    I would need to either vary my conditions to tweak my job title if I get a new offer as nowhere will exactly match my title
    deverett, it's the job *description* that has to match. Job *titles* don't matter, because an employer can call a position anything that makes sense within his/her organization, which may not have any relevance to anything outside. For instance, I remember someone who was "Leader of Team B", and another who was "Assistant to Mr Johnson" (and as somone said on the thread at the time, that gave a very wide range of possibilities, depending if Mr Johnson was the CEO or the janitor!).

  9. #9
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    Jul 2019
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    New Zealand
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    Quote Originally Posted by redbells View Post
    I am also worried about my partner's visa since if I am not allowed to work, we will be depending solely on his income. Does this imply that when I apply for my talent work visa, I would have to apply for his partnership visa again? Since he will be applying for the same visa, I believe his conditions would still be open work visa?
    Hi redbells,

    I recently called immigration and asked them the same question. They told me that when my partner change / apply for a new work visa, I would have to apply for my partnership visa again. In our case, my partner is currently on Post Study work visa and he is thinking of applying for Accredited Employer WTR Visa, they confirmed that I would have to go through the process of re-applying work visa (can't skip this using "variation condition" even though our relationship remain the same).

    Hope this information helps!

    Good luck!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    May 2017
    Location
    new zealand
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    Hi Deverett, you are right. Time is not my friend right now, especially with restructuring in the company. It's good that the restructuring in your company dragged on for 3 months, at least that gave you some time to sort out your visa.

    Yes, unfortunately my current employer is not following the right and fair process for this restructuring. 1)He issued restructuring to 1 team only, when everyone in the company should be issued a letter 2) Everyone in the company should be in the consultation meeting 3) I was not properly informed of the restructuring affecting me - I was brief by my current employer and his lawyer after their consultation meeting and indrectly forcing me to resign next monday. The entire restructuring/redundancy is a sham - I know that because my employer wants to cut costs and reduce people who ae not performing and has specifically told me who he wanted to get rid of.

    All I can do now is to drag this out as much as possible and get my talent work visa submitted.

    I called immigration, and the lady on the phone was extremely helpful and reassuring. I was advised that after I have resigned provideded that my talent work visa is being processed, my ESV is still valid, which means I can legally be in the country. I will not be issued an interim visa (as JandM as advised, thank you!). My work visa(ESV) will just be a visa that allows me to remain in the country. I will not be allowed to work for either company.

    As for my partner, INZ advised that I will have to apply again as my ESV was for 3 years, talent work visa is for 30months. However, I can either 1) Apply together with my talent work visa or 2) Apply for partnership after I have been granted my talent work visa.
    My partner will not be affected as he will be applying for the same type of visa - partner of a worker

    It was a relief to know that I do not have to leave the country after I resigned as long as my talent work visa is being processed. I would be on visitor conditions.
    Hopefully this information can also help others. I would of course, advised that calling up INZ to clarify would always be a good idea. Lady fom INZ was extremely helpful and gave me various suggestions and a clear explanation. I am very thankful to her as well.

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