Man sentenced for fraudulent immigration scheme

A 54 year-old man was sentenced on 19 December 2025 to 2 years and 2 months’ imprisonment for orchestrating a sophisticated scheme to supply false or misleading information to Immigration New Zealand to support the visa applications of 24 foreign workers.

Vincent Ding Peng Hii was sentenced at Auckland District Court after pleading guilty to 24 charges of supplying false or misleading information under the Immigration Act.

Between June 2015 and June 2021, Hii created fake job offers and business records, set up companies and rented office spaces, and operated wage recycling arrangements to make it appear that foreign workers were genuinely employed in skilled roles.

MBIE National Manager Investigations, Jason Perry, says an investigation by Immigration New Zealand (INZ) revealed that Hii made false job offers for skilled migrants using his companies, most notably Salesforce Contracting Services NZ Limited (now in liquidation), to meet the immigration requirements for work and residence visas.

“Hii went to great lengths to create the illusion of legitimate employment, including arranging for applicants to attend rented offices in Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch in case of verification visits by immigration officers,” he says.

In some cases, applicants were required to fund their own salaries and tax payments. Workers were instructed to transfer money into a range of different personal accounts of the defendant and associates and then that money would be transferred into a business bank account disguised as other types of income such as “training fees”.

The 24 applicants who received job offers under the scheme submitted supporting documents to INZ which contained false employment details, including job titles, salaries and places of work. 

INZ is continuing to assess the immigration status of individuals affected by the scheme.

“We take this type of offending extremely seriously,” Jason Perry says.

“This was a deliberate and calculated attempt to undermine the integrity of New Zealand’s immigration system. This case should serve as a warning to anyone considering similar offending. INZ will continue to investigate and prosecute those who seek to take advantage of our immigration processes.”

For further information about this media release:

Email media@mbie.govt.nz