SM6.10 Skilled Employment (26/11/2018)
- Skilled employment is employment that meets a minimum remuneration threshold and requires specialist, technical or management expertise obtained through:
- the completion of recognised relevant qualifications; or
- relevant work experience; or
- the completion of recognised relevant qualifications and/or work experience.
- Assessment of whether employment is skilled for the purposes of the Skilled Migrant Category is primarily based on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) which associates skill levels with each occupation, and the level of remuneration for the employment.
Note: The ANZSCO is available at www.immigration.govt.nz/ANZSCO
SM6.10.5 Skilled employment in an occupation included in the ANZSCO
Current employment in New Zealand or an offer of employment in New Zealand will be assessed as skilled if:
- the occupation is described in the ANZSCO as:
- a skill level 1, 2 or 3 occupation and the remuneration for that employment is $25.00 per hour or above (or the equivalent annual salary); or
- a skill level 4 or 5 occupation and the remuneration for that employment is $37.50 per hour or above (or the equivalent annual salary); and
- the principal applicant can demonstrate that their employment substantially matches the description for that occupation as set out in the ANZSCO (see SM6.10.5.1); and
- the employment is full-time (employment is full-time if it amounts to, on average, 30 hours per week over an agreed pay period); and
- the applicant is suitably qualified by training and/or experience for that occupation, as set out in SM6.10.20 or SM6.10.25; and
- an immigration officer is satisfied that the employment is:
- genuine; and
- ongoing; and
- sustainable by the employer at the specified level of remuneration (see SM6.30.10).
SM6.10.5.1 Assessment of ‘substantial match’
- For the purpose of SM6.10.5 (b) above, assessment of ‘substantial match’ involves a determination of whether the applicant’s employment is substantially consistent with the ANZSCO ‘Occupation’ (6-digit) level description for that occupation and with the tasks listed at the ANZSCO ‘Unit Group’ (4-digit) level description for that occupational group, excluding any tasks which are not relevant to the ‘Occupation’ description.
- To be considered a substantial match to an occupation, the tasks that are relevant to the applicant’s employment role must comprise most of that role.
For example: An applicant’s employment in the occupation ‘Disabilities service officer’ (411712) is not required to include the task set out at the ANZSCO Unit Group (4-digit) classification level for ‘Welfare support workers’ of "supervising offenders on probation and parole". Other listed tasks that are relevant to the role of a "Disabilities services officer’ must comprise most of their role. Note: Where no description is stated at the ANZSCO Occupation (6-digit) level, an immigration officer should refer to the ANZSCO Unit Group (4-digit) description or higher ANZSCO group (3-digit or 2-digit) level as necessary to determine a substantial match with the stated occupation. Similarly, where no ANZSCO core tasks are listed at the ANZSCO Unit Group (4-digit) level, an immigration officer should refer to a higher ANZSCO group (3-digit or 2-digit) level as necessary to locate core tasks ANZSCO associates with the stated occupation. Note: Determining whether an applicant’s employment substantially matches an ANZSCO occupation description may require consideration of the scope and scale of the employer’s organisation and operation (the size of the operation, the number of staff and managers, and whether management functions are centralised at a head office or undertaken by other managers).
SM6.10.15 Occupations not included in the ANZSCO
Where an immigration officer is satisfied that an applicant’s employment has no corresponding description in the ANZSCO, the employment may be assessed as skilled if:
- the remuneration for that employment is $37.50 per hour or above (or the equivalent annual salary); and
- the employment is full-time because it amounts to, on average, at least 30 hours per week over an agreed pay period; and
- the applicant is suitably qualified by training and/or experience for that occupation, as set out in SM6.10.25; and
- an immigration officer is satisfied that the employment is:
- genuine; and
- ongoing; and
- sustainable by the employer at the specified level of remuneration (see SM6.30.10).
SM6.10.20 Suitably qualified by training and/or experience: skill level 1, 2 and 3 occupations
- Where the applicant’s employment is in an occupation described in the ANZSCO as at skill level 1, 2 or 3 the applicant will be assessed as being suitably qualified by training and/or experience if:
- they hold a relevant recognised qualification that is at, or above, the qualification level on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF) (see SM8.10) that corresponds to the indicative skill level described for their skill level 1, 2 or 3 occupation in the ANZSCO; or
- they have the relevant work experience that the ANZSCO indicates may substitute for the required qualification; or
- the employment is in an occupation included on the Long Term Skill Shortage List (LTSSL) (see Appendix 4) and the applicant meets the relevant requirements specified in column three of the LTSSL for that occupation; or
- the employment is in an occupation that requires New Zealand registration by law to be undertaken and is included at SM10.5 and the applicant holds evidence of full or provisional registration in that occupation in New Zealand.
- Despite (a) (ii) above, applicants in skill level 1 occupations may substitute the required qualification with five years of relevant work experience.
- Despite (a)(i) and (ii) and (b) above, applicants employed as ‘Pharmacy technicians’ (ANZSCO 311215) will only be awarded points for skilled employment in New Zealand in that occupation if they hold the required New Zealand qualification (a National Certificate in Pharmacy (Technician), or the New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Pharmacy Technician) Level 4 or 5 or the New Zealand Certificate in Pharmacy (Specialist Technician) Level 6), as required by the Director-General of Health.
SM6.10.25 Suitably qualified by training and/or experience: other occupations
Where the applicant’s employment is in an occupation described in the ANZSCO as a skill level 4 or 5 occupation, or their employment is assessed under the provisions of SM6.10.15, they will be assessed as being suitably qualified by training and/or experience if:
- they hold a relevant recognised qualification which is at, or above, the level of a NZQF Level 4 Certificate (see SM8.10); or
- they hold a relevant recognised NZQF level 3 qualification included on the List of Qualifications Exempt from Assessment (see Appendix 3); or
- they have three years of relevant work experience; or
- the employment is in an occupation included on the LTSSL (see Appendix 4) and the applicant meets the relevant requirements specified in column three of the LTSSL for that occupation; or
- the employment is in an occupation that requires New Zealand registration by law to be undertaken and is included at SM10.5 and the applicant holds evidence of full or provisional registration in that occupation in New Zealand.
Effective 26/11/2018
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