BD9.10 Comply with specific employment, immigration and business standards

1. The business or any of its key persons (as defined at BD9.25) must not currently be included on a list of non-compliant employers for breaches of employment standards, maintained by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). The rules for inclusion on the list are set out in Appendix 10.
2. The business or any of its key persons (as defined at BD9.25) must not currently be included on a list of non-compliant employers for offences against the Immigration Act 2009, maintained by MBIE. The rules for inclusion on the list are set out in Appendix 18.
3. The business or any of its key persons must not have provided false or misleading information to INZ or withheld relevant information from INZ that is prejudicial to the approval of an application (including the application being applied for), or to the outcome of any verification, investigation or compliance activities.
4. The business or any of its key persons must not have allowed a person who is not entitled under the Immigration Act 2009 to work in the business’ service to do that work, or employed a person in a manner that is inconsistent with a work-related condition of that person’s visa and for which an infringement notice was not issued.
5. If the business or any of its key persons have previously been included on a list of non-compliant employers for offences against the Immigration Act 2009, maintained by MBIE, or have failed to meet any of the requirements for accreditation:
   1. the issue must have been rectified; and
   2. the business must have taken sufficient steps to prevent it from happening again; and
   3. an immigration officer must be satisfied that the business will comply with their obligations under the Immigration Act 2009 (including the obligation not to commit an offence) in the immediate future.
6. Where any of the business’ key persons are not New Zealand citizens or residents, and who are not employed by the employer, that key person must not be:
   1. in New Zealand without a valid visa; or
   2. acting as the business’ key person in breach of the conditions of their New Zealand visa.
7. The business or its key persons must not have received a prison sentence or home detention for an offence under sections 343(1)(d) or 344(d) of the Immigration Act 2009, regardless of when the offence occurred.
8. The business or its key persons must not have been convicted at any time of an offence under:
   1. sections 343(1)(a), 345, 348, 342(1)(b), 351 of the Immigration Act 2009; or
   2. sections 98, 98C or 98D of the Crimes Act 1961.
9. Where any of the business’ key persons have a history of immigration non-compliance in one or more other organisations that they have acted as a key person in, an immigration officer must be satisfied that the business has taken sufficient steps to prevent the same non-compliance happening in their organisation. For the purpose of this instruction, a history of immigration non-compliance:
   1. means two or more instances of the non-compliance set out at (b) to (d) above; and
   2. includes where it was only carried out by the other organisation rather than the individual, or where the other organisation was penalised rather than the individual, provided that the individual was acting as a key person in the organisation when the non-compliance occurred.
10. The business’ key persons must not:
    1. be prohibited from being a director or promotor of, or being concerned or taking part in the management of, an incorporated company or unincorporated body, within New Zealand or overseas, by:
       • being issued a prohibition notice by the Registrar of Companies (who have this power under section 385 of the Companies Act 1993; or
       • virtue of section 382 of the Companies Act 1993; or
       • being disqualified by a court (who have this power under section 233 of the Companies Act 1993); or
    2. have been convicted in the last five years of any offences listed in section 382 of the Companies Act that prohibit a person from managing a company, or any equivalent offence in any other country.
11. Where the business or any of its key persons have an active verification activities, compliance activities, investigation or case pending for any non-compliance that, if proven, would result in the business not meeting the immigration, employment or business standards set out in these instructions, the application may be put on hold for up to 3 months at a time or until there is an outcome of the verification, compliance or investigation activities, whichever occurs first. This decision must be approved by an Immigration Manager, and may take into account:
    1. how long it is expected to take to reach an outcome of the investigation; and
    2. the seriousness of any alleged offending and possible ineligibility period if the offending is proven; and
    3. the likelihood of further harm occurring before an outcome is reached; and
    4. where the business is not aware of the verification, compliance or investigation activities, whether these activities will be jeopardised by putting the application on hold.
12. Where the business or any of its key persons is being prosecuted for any non-compliance that, if proven, would result in the business not meeting the requirements set out above, the application must be put on hold until there is an outcome of the prosecution. This decision must be approved by an Immigration Manager.
13. The business must not pass on recruitment, training or equipment costs, in New Zealand and outside of New Zealand, to Accredited Employer work visa holders or applicants, including, but not limited to:
    1. advertising costs; and
    2. recruitment agency fees; and
    3. employer accreditation and Job Check application fees, and any other associated costs such as immigration adviser fees; and
    4. compulsory training and induction costs related to the job (including on-the-job training); and
    5. health and safety equipment required to undertake employment safely; and
    6. branded uniforms; and
    7. trade testing (including testing centre, tester accommodation and salary costs); and
    8. tools where the ownership of the tools is retained by the employer.
14. The business must not charge fees to Accredited Employer work visa holders or applicants outside of New Zealand, that would be unlawful in New Zealand, including, but not limited to:
    1. any payment to secure or retain an employment relationship; and
    2. bonding agreements for an unlawful purpose; and
    3. deductions from wages or salaries for accommodation, travel or food that are unreasonable or have not been consented to in writing by the worker and included in the employment agreement.

Effective 24/11/2025