New Zealand Strengthens Visa Regulations Due to “Unsustainable” Migration Levels

The New Zealand government has announced changes to its immigration policy, including introducing an English language requirement for low skilled jobs and setting a minimum skills and work experience threshold for most employer work visas. Additionally, the maximum continuous stay for most low skilled roles will be reduced to three years from five years.

Immigration Minister Erica Stanford emphasized the government’s focus on attracting and retaining highly skilled migrants, such as secondary teachers, where there is a skill shortage. She also emphasized the need to prioritize New Zealanders for jobs where there are no skills shortages.

Last year, a near record 173,000 people migrated to New Zealand. With a population of about 5.1 million, New Zealand has experienced rapid growth in its migrant numbers since the end of the pandemic, raising concerns about its potential impact on inflation.

Neighboring Australia has also seen a significant increase in migrants and has announced plans to halve its migrant intake over the next two years. *(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.

)*