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WH1.15 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Limited... (26/11/2007)

WH1.15 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Limited Purpose Entry (LPE) Policy - Visas and Permits

Applications for RSE limited purpose entry visas and permits must be considered under WH1.15 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Limited Purpose Entry (LPE) Policy - Visas and Permits in addition to the Limited Purpose Entry policy.

  1. All visas issued and permits granted under the RSE policy for the purpose of working for a Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) must be issued or granted as a limited purpose visa or permit.
  2. A Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) limited purpose visa allows a person to travel to New Zealand for the express purpose of undertaking seasonal employment in the horticulture and viticulture industries for a specified RSE(s) (see L2).
  3. A Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) limited purpose permit allows a person to be in New Zealand for the express purposes of undertaking seasonal employment in the horticulture and viticulture industries for a specified RSE (see L3).
  4. For the purposes of this policy seasonal work in the horticulture and viticulture industries means planting, maintaining, harvesting, and packing crops in the horticulture and viticulture industries.

WH1.15.1 Who is eligible for a RSE limited purpose visa or permit?

  1. Applicants for visas and permits under the RSE LPE policy must:
    1. be aged 18 or older; and
    2. have an employment agreement (which meets the requirements set out at WH1.20) with an employer who has RSE status and holds a current ATR; and
    3. meet the health and character requirements as set out at E6 with any necessary modifications and WH1.15.10; and
    4. meet the requirements for bona fide applicants as set out at E5; and
    5. hold a return ticket to their home country.

      Note: The employment agreement provided to workers must be the same as that which is provided to INZ at the ATR stage, unless the terms and conditions are more beneficial to the worker.

  2. To be issued a limited purpose visa under RSE LPE policy applicants must be offshore at the time of application.
  3. To be granted a permit under RSE LPE policy applicants must:
    1. hold a valid RSE limited purpose visa on entry to New Zealand; or
    2. hold a current RSE limited purpose permit at the time of application and meet the requirements set out at WH1.15.5 or WH1.15.6 below.

WH1.15.5 Who is eligible to transfer from one RSE to another RSE?

  1. An RSE limited purpose permit holder may transfer from one RSE to another where:
    1. the status of the first employer as an RSE has been rescinded (see WH1.15.35); or
    2. the RSE limited purpose permit holder is no longer able to work for the first RSE and INZ is satisfied that this situation is due to exceptional circumstances or circumstances beyond the control of that RSE (e.g. crop damage caused by severe weather); or
    3. the RSE limited purpose permit holder is currently employed by an RSE who has jointly submitted ATRs with second or subsequent RSEs as set out in WH1.10.1(e); and
    4. the worker has a current employment agreement with the second or subsequent RSE who holds a current ATR.
  2. In cases where INZ has determined a worker is eligible to transfer to another RSE the worker may apply:
    1. for a Variation of Conditions (VOC) if the new employment agreement is for a period of work that will end on the same date as the expiry date of their current RSE limited purpose permit; or
    2. for a new RSE limited purpose permit if the new employment agreement is for a period of work that does not end on the same date as the expiry date of the current RSE limited purpose permit.
  3. Any applications for a VOC or further limited purpose permit for the purposes of transferring from one RSE to another will only be approved where both RSEs have provided written consent to the transfer.
  4. Despite (c) above, in cases where the transfer is occurring because:
    1. the status of the previous employer as an RSE has been rescinded; or
    2. the worker is not currently employed by an RSE;

    a VOC or further permit may be granted without the consent of the previous employer.

  5. VOC and further RSE limited purpose permits will only be granted where the terms and conditions of employment meet all RSE policy requirements.

WH1.15.6 Who is eligible to apply for an RSE Limited Purpose Permit to extend the period to be worked for an RSE?

  1. In cases where an RSE requires a worker to remain in New Zealand for a further period to achieve the express purpose of undertaking seasonal work for that RSE, the worker may apply for a further limited purpose permit if:
    1. INZ is satisfied that the RSE has exceptional circumstances or there are circumstances beyond the control of that RSE that require them to extend the period of work for an RSE worker (e.g. due to bad weather); or
    2. the RSE has indicated the potential need to extend the period of work for a limited number of RSE workers at the ATR stage, and INZ is satisfied that this is necessary and will not undermine the integrity of RSE policy.
  2. In all cases:
    1. the extended period of work must fall within an approved ATR period; and
    2. INZ must be satisfied that the employer has a genuine need to employ the worker(s) in question, for longer than the original duration of the employment agreement; and
    3. the extended period of work will not take the worker beyond the maximum period of stay allowed in New Zealand (see WH1.15.20(c)).

WH1.15.10 Specific health requirements for RSE limited purpose visa or permit applicants

  1. Applicants for visas and permits under this policy must:
    1. undergo screening for pulmonary tuberculosis if they have risk factors as set out in A4.25.1 and A4.25.5, regardless of their intended length of stay in New Zealand; and
    2. undergo screening for HIV/AIDS if they are from a country with risk factors for HIV/AIDS (see WH1.15.15).
  2. Despite A4.15, applicants for an RSE limited purpose visa or permit who are HIV positive will not be eligible for a limited purpose visa or permit under RSE limited purpose policy.

WH1.15.15 Applicants from countries with high risk factors for HIV/AIDS

  1. All RSE limited purpose visa or permit applicants who are citizens of, or are normally resident in, a country listed below must provide the results of an HIV test with their RSE limited purpose visa or permit application.
  2. The following is a list of countries with an estimated adult HIV/AIDS prevalence of 1% or more:

Angola

Bahamas

Barbados

Belize

Benin

Botswana

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cambodia

Cameroon

Central African Republic

Chad

Congo

Côte d'Ivoire

Democratic Republic of Congo

Djibouti

Dominican Republic

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Estonia

Ethiopia

Gabon

Gambia

Ghana

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Guyana

Haiti

Honduras

Jamaica

Kenya

Lesotho

Liberia

Malawi

Mali

Mozambique

Myanmar

Namibia

Niger

Nigeria

Papua New Guinea

Republic of Moldova

Russian Federation

Rwanda

Sierra Leone

South Africa

Sudan

Suriname

Swaziland

Thailand

Togo

Trinidad and Tobago

Uganda

Ukraine

Tanzania

Zambia

Zimbabwe

 

WH1.15.20 Currency and conditions of an RSE limited purpose visa and permit

  1. Visas will be issued to allow arrival in New Zealand no earlier than 14 days before, and no later than 14 days after, the expected commencement of work as stated in the employment agreement.
  2. No limited purpose permit will be granted beyond the term of the relevant ATR.
  3. Limited purpose permits will only be granted for a maximum stay in New Zealand of up to seven months in any 11 month period, with the exception of limited purpose permits for citizens of Tuvalu or Kiribati who are normally resident in Tuvalu or Kiribati, which may be granted for a maximum stay of up to nine months in any 11 month period. The maximum period of stay includes any time required for internal travel and induction arrangements.
  4. Limited purpose permits issued under RSE LPE Policy will be subject to the condition that RSE limited purpose permit holders may undertake employment only for the RSE who holds the relevant ATR and with whom they have entered into an employment agreement.
  5. Where the non-New Zealand citizen or resident worker ceases to be employed by an RSE, their RSE limited purpose permit will be revoked.

WH1.15.25 Ineligibility for other permits

Applications from the holder of an RSE limited purpose permit for any other type of temporary permit, or a residence permit will be declined.

WH1.15.30 Applying for a limited purpose visa or permit under RSE Limited Purpose Entry Policy

Applications for a RSE limited purpose visa or permit must:

  1. be made on the Application to Work in New Zealand for a Recognised Seasonal Employer (NZIS 1142) form, and
  2. meet all the requirements under Generic Temporary Entry policy for lodging an application for a temporary entry visa or permit as set out at E4; and
  3. meet all the requirements for eligibility under WH1.15.1; and
  4. include an employment agreement from an employer with RSE status and that meets the requirements for employment agreements set out in WH1.20; and
  5. include the results of an HIV test if the applicant is from a country listed as having high risk factors for HIV/AIDS (see WH1.15.15(b)) on the Recognised Seasonal Employer Policy Supplementary Medical Certificate (NZIS 1143); and
  6. include the results of pulmonary tuberculosis screening on the Temporary Entry X-ray Certificate (NZIS 1096) if the applicant has risk factors as set out in A4.25.1 and A4.25.5.

WH1.15.35 Workers whose employers lose RSE status

  1. If during the currency of an RSE limited purpose permit the employer has their RSE status rescinded, or not renewed, the holder of that permit may seek employment with another employer with RSE status (see WH1.15.5).
  2. Where no further offer of employment under the RSE limited purpose policy is obtained the RSE limited purpose permit will be revoked and the worker must leave New Zealand.

Effective 26/11/2007

SEE ALSO

WH1.15 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Limited...(31/10/2009)

WH1.15 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Limited... (08/12/2008)

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