Quick NZ visa question

jank

I am wondering about de-facto visas. I am in two minds about applying for residency. I do have the points and all that, I am here now working away in an IT job. Thing is I am not sure what to do now.

See my contract expires the middle of december which is more or less the same time my WHV expires. My OH is working in a permanent job and has been verbally given a work visa when her WHV expires in december. So I have 2 options.

One is to get on her visa as a partner. Does anyone know how much this is? I think its about 280 dollors or so. Also how long does it take to get. Is there a 6 month wait like one for PR. Besides the hastle of getting the paper work and all that I think it should be ok.

Option 2 is to go and apply for PR (I have some of my EOI filled out and all!!).
This is much more costly then the above however it has the advantage of being a resident of NZ for 2 years and of course the path to permanent residency and the kiwi passport many years down the road (hello OZ!!):pac:

See the original plan was to work for about 9/12 months and the do more travel. Get a RTW plane ticket and travel China/Japan, home for a few weeks then South America and back to NZ. Then god knows where.

Since the world economy has taken a hit and jobs are hard to come by I think those plans for postponed for now anyway. I still want to do all that travelling but it can wait a year or 2 more. I am only 27 (28 tomorrow!!) so I have time. The OH has a good job at the moment and there is possibility of me staying on in a very good multinational IT company with opportunites there. So we would be mad to leave come the end of our visas. Plus i dont want to be back in Ireland on the dole queue wishing I was back here.

I think we will be back in Ireland sometime April 2010 for a wedding and basicly to see home again. By that time it will be about 20 months since leaving. But I am not sure what we will do then. Thing is I am not so sure will that visit be just a visit home for a few weeks, as part of a longer RTW trip I outlined above or a permanent return home.

I just dont want to waste 2500 kiwi dollars for a visa that we will only use for a few months when the option might be there to get some sort of extended visa. Then again I dont want to let this oppertunity pass and me regreating not taking the chance of PR when I had it.

TBH NZ is class. Loads to do. Pay isnt so good but with the winter coming up I plan to be hitting the slopes every weekend!

However I wouldn't mind taking a year or two out working in Canada or OZ or both even sometime in the future.

I suppose I am looking for someone to make up my mind about which visa!!:pac:

watna

I recently got residency through de facto partnership. It cost me $700 plus the medical costs and took nearly 5 months.

I also got a work permit (as I thought the residency wouldn't come through in time) - that cost $280 and took about 6 weeks. Because my residency came through at the same time they refunded my $280 work permit fee.

Feel free to pm me if you have any more specific questions or want advice on the evidence we used etc.

My advice - having kind of got them both is to get the residency. It's forever and give you the same rights as a kiwi citizen (you an even vote!). It wasn't much more hassle than the work permit -if you want a work permit for over two years (and that includes the time you have already spent in NZ - apparently they backdate it) you'll need medicals anyway.

watna

ok, just read this again. You mentioned your parnter is on a WHV? Is she not a kiwi then? If not, then I'm not sure you can get de facto partnership. What kind of visa will she be on? I think you can get something else - a girl at work is here because her husband has a skilled migrant visa - hers is called a talent visa I think.

Can you link to what visas exactly you want to apply for?

jank

Thanks for that. Do they back date the residency visa by any chance or does it start from the day you get the blue sticker?

I'll mull over the rest of it:pac:

watna

jank wrote: »

Thanks for that. Do they back date the residency visa by any chance or does it start from the day you get the blue sticker?

I'll mull over the rest of it:pac:

I'll need to check my passport but the residency is dated from the day you get the sticker I think. Either that or the day it was granted. It's not backdated. Also - when you get your residency you have to pay an extra $300 as a migrant levy (to help people with English classes and settling in NZ - total bollocks if you ask me!) to get the blue stickers in your passport. That's worth keeping in mind.

Luckily work paid my migrant levy cos they're good like that!

jank

I just think she will be on a gereral work visa.
http://www.emigratenz.org/work-visa-new-zealand.html

Eh I am not sure as it is way off. I will try and get her to clarify in work though. If what you say is true then PR might be the only option.

watna

It might be worth ringing immigration and finding out what you are entitled to if your partner is on a work visa. I'm only speaking from the experience of getting PR under de facto partnership of a NZ citizen as my OH is a kiwi. I'm not sure what you can get if you are the parnter of a visa holder.

December may seem like far away but in my experience, it is never to soon to get it sorted out. Visas can take a while and it is probably something your gf and her work should be aware of too. She might need to apply well in advance as well.

jank

Yea might do that alright! Thanks for your help Watna

watna

No probs - don't want you getting deported. Do we?!

Crumble Froo

not before i get to meet you knowingly anyway, given that you only live around the corner...

and ive not gotten round to reading all that yet, im just home from work and in an anti-effort mood.

i'd imagine from the skim i had that watna's the best bet to listen to anyway...