Advice & StrategyThere are various visa categories available depending on why you plan to visit New Zealand. Key to any visa application is ensuring that you meet the generic and specific requirements stipulated by Immigration New Zealand (INZ) for each category. We can assist by understanding your reasons and assessing your circumstances to determine whether or not you meet the stated visa requirements, or we could recommend an alternative visa category you may not have considered.
It's easy to go to the Immigration New Zealand website and see the different types of visas. You may figure out which one you need and whether you meet the INZ requirements. You may even have informal or anecdotal "advice" from friends, family, forums or colleagues and find that it all works. If you are uncertain or your situation does not fit neatly into a category then seek out professional advice. Licensed Immigration Advisers are licensed by the Immigration Advisers Authority and governed by a Code of Conduct and subject to strict rules. INZ will only deal with you (the principle applicant) or a licensed adviser whether you are in NZ or overseas. Advisers need to pass competency exams and are expected to have a working knowledge of the INZ Operational Manual which is constantly updated, so the rules that applied for others may not still be applicable. A licensed adviser can also assess whether the visa option you have chosen is the best option after fully assessing your circumstances. The IAA also requires licensed advisers to have a Complaints Procedure and, if still needed after following an adviser's own procedures, has its own Complaints Procedure for clients who feel that they have a grievance. This governance is all aimed at protecting migrants whom the government considers a vulnerable sector. Here's an example of unscrupulous people taking advantage of vulnerable segments and why the government decided to "clean up" the industry. According to an IAA survey conducted by the Immigration Adviser Authority, "Almost 90 per cent of migrants surveyed said they would recommend their licensed immigration adviser to family and friends, results of an independent survey show". Our Complaints Procedure
If you have a complaint please let us know immediately by phone or email what the nature of your complaint is. We will make sure that you are heard and we will acknowledge in writing within 3 working days that we have received your complaint. All complaints will be attended to by the Principal, Graham Burger and you may contact him directly if you wish. We will advise you on the result of our findings within 7 working days and arrange a meeting to discuss a resolution. Should we fail to agree on how to resolve your complaint then you have the right to complain to the Immigration Advisers Authority "IAA" directly but you will have to do so in writing and demonstrate that you first followed our internal complaints process. Grounds for complaints to the IAA are listed in Section 44 of the Licensed Immigration Adviser Act 2007.
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FeesYour investment in your future - how much will it cost?
We have a basic fee structure we will make available to you once we have communciated with you and assessed your situation and identified any possible complications involved around your application. If we assess that your application may take more time than the average, we will advise you accordingly. Equally, if we assess that your application looks like it will take less time than the average we will adjust your cost down. Our aim is to charge a fair rate to cover the actual time involved so we can ensure that you receive the most professional and efficient service we can offer. As a boutique firm we believe our costs are competitive. See here for an explanation of our initial assessment costs which may apply in some cases but if it does then future fees are reduced by the same amount. Check New Zealand Government fees here as well as which INZ office applies to you. To protect consumers, the Immgration Adviser Authority (IAA) had publicly available guidelines on what fees are being charged by the industry so you can assess our final quote against industry norms. [UPDATE - IAA HAS SUBSEQUENTLY WITHDRAWN THIS GUIDANCE] Visa Categories we assist withResidence Visas
Skilled Migrant Category Marriage (Partnership) Family Category Residence from Work Pacific Access Temporary Visas Visitor Student Work Entry for Marriage NZ Employers recruiting staff from overseas Business For quotations involving the Business Investor, Entrepreneur and Business Visa categories, you will need to contact us directly for further information. These categories can involve limited or huge amounts of work including preparation of business plans etc. We therefore need considerable detail concerning your intentions before we can provide costings. |
The Licensed Immgration Adviser Act 2007 (NZ) "LIA"This Act mandates that anyone who gives immigration advice, whether in New Zealand or offshore, must be licensed to do so.
Immigration New Zealand "INZ" will not accept any applications from immigration advisers that are unlicensed. This does not prevent migrants from applying themselves, but if you receive any advice then you must declare it on the INZ application forms. The definition of "Advice" is broad and basically anything other than simply taking instruction from the applicant to assist with completing their forms or simply directing them to publicly available information would be offering advice. The penalties are severe. In terms of the LIA, a regulatory body has been established, the Immigration Advisers Authority "IAA", which is the authority that issues licenses. The IAA also lays out competency standards that prospective licensed immigration advisers must meet before they will be considered for licensing. |
IAA Code of ConductThe IAA has established a Code of Conduct which all Licensed Immigration Advisers have to comply with in their practises and day to day dealings with clients and public. The Code of Conduct can be found here.
The Immigration Act 2009This Act is the overall New Zealand statute governing all New Zealand immigration policy. All visas are issued in terms of this legislation and the subordinate legislation it enacts, such as Immigration Regulations and the more detailed INZ Operational Manual which dictates what conditions visa applications have to comply with to be considered by INZ. A licensed immigration adviser will have a working knowledge of these legislations as part of demonstrating that they meet the competency standards required by the IAA.
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