Hiring people from overseas who are already in New Zealand
People from overseas who are already in New Zealand can work for you on a number of different visas. These include temporary visas — such as student, post study and working holiday visas.
Student visas
Many people from overseas who are in New Zealand on student visas are allowed to work part-time up to 20 hours a week while they are studying and full-time during their breaks and holidays.
When an international student applies for a job, ask them for their passport and eVisa approval letter. Check the expiry date of their visa. They can only work for you if their visa is current. You can make a copy of their visa for your records.
There is information in their eVisa letter about their entitlement to work. This will match the information in VisaView.
Note
If you want a student to keep working for you after their student visa expires or they complete their studies, they must get another valid work visa, such as a Post Study Work Visa.
Post Study Work Visa
After an international student completes their studies in New Zealand, they may be able to work here on a Post Study Work Visa. The length of their visa and who they can work for will depend on what qualification they have completed.
You can apply for a Post Study Work Visa if you have completed: Alert If you applied for your student visa before 12 May 2022, and your qualification is not on the list of qualifications eligible for a Post Study Work Visa, you may still be able to apply for a Post Study Work Visa, but you will need to have an
You can find more information about the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework levels on the New Zealand Qualifications Authority website. About the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) If you applied for your student visa before 12 May 2022 and your qualification is not on the list of Qualifications Eligible for a Post Study Work Visa, you may still be eligible for a Post Study Work Visa, but you will need to have an
For your qualification to be acceptable: About the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) - NZQA website Your qualification at level 7 or higher is acceptable if your course lasted 30 weeks or more. Your Level 4, 5 or 6 qualification is acceptable if you: Note You may also be eligible for a Post Study Work Visa if you have completed an acceptable qualification, as stated above, on a student visa that you held, or had applied for, on 08 August 2018. English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) qualifications are not acceptable. You can find more information about the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework levels on the New Zealand Qualifications Authority website. About the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) - NZQA website
Qualifications needed for a Post Study Work Visa
Check what qualifications you need to have recently completed in New Zealand to apply for a Post Study Work Visa. This could depend on when you applied for your student visa.
Who can apply for a Post Study Work Visa
Qualification
Knowledge requirements (focus area)
Related jobs
A Graduate Diploma at NZQF Level 7
Highway engineering or civil engineering
Construction Project Manager
A Graduate Diploma at NZQF Level 7
Construction management or construction project management
Construction Project Manager or Project Builder
A Graduate Diploma at NZQF Level 7
Construction
Project Builder
A Graduate Diploma in Construction at NZQF Level 7
Quantity Surveying
Quantity Surveyor
A Graduate Diploma in Quantity Surveying at NZQF Level 7
not applicable (N/A)
Quantity Surveyor
A Graduate Diploma acceptable to the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand for registration
and
The applicant meets all the Council’s other requirements for teacher registration and certification.
Registration and Certification — Teaching Council of Aotearoa New ZealandN/A
Primary, Intermediate or Secondary School Teacher
Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Early Childhood Education) or comparable qualification that is acceptable to the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand for registration.
and
The applicant meets all the Council’s other requirements for teacher registration and certification.
Registration and Certification — Teaching Council of Aotearoa New ZealandN/A
Early Childhood Teacher
A qualification at NZQF Level 7, with a letter from Engineering New Zealand certifying that the qualification and any further learning meet the benchmark requirements towards Chartered Professional Engineer professional status in New Zealand.
N/A
Engineer or Civil, Electrical, Electronic, Mechanical Engineering Technician
A Diploma at NZQF Level 6 or higher with a minimum of 240 credits
Highway engineering, construction or construction management
Construction Project Manager or Project Builder
A Diploma at NZQF Level 6 or higher with a minimum of 240 credits
Civil engineering
Construction Project Manager or Civil Engineering Technician
New Zealand Diploma in Engineering (Level 6) with a strand in Civil Engineering, 240 credits
N/A
Construction Project Manager or Civil Engineering Technician
New Zealand Diploma in Construction (Quantity Surveying) Level 6 or higher
N/A
Quantity Surveyor or Project Builder
New Zealand Diploma in Construction (Level 6 or higher) with a strand in Quantity Surveying, 240 credits
N/A
Quantity Surveyor or Project Builder
New Zealand Diploma in Construction (Level 6 or higher) with a strand in Construction Economics, Construction Management or Building, 240 credits
N/A
Project Builder
New Zealand Diploma in Engineering (Level 6) with a strand in Electrical Engineering, 240 credits
N/A
Telecommunications, Telecommunications Network Engineer or Electrical Engineering Technician
New Zealand Diploma in Engineering (Level 6 or higher) with a strand in Electronics Engineering, 240 credits
N/A
Electronic Engineering Technician
New Zealand Diploma in Engineering (Level 6 or higher) with a strand in Mechanical Engineering
N/A
Mechanical Engineering Technician
A diploma at NZQF Level 5 or higher
Farm management, agriculture or dairy technology
Dairy Cattle Farmer
A certificate at NZQF Level 4 or higher
New Zealand Certificate in Automotive Electrical Engineering (NZQF Level 4)
Automotive Electrician
A certificate at NZQF Level 4 or higher
New Zealand Certificate in Heavy Automotive Engineering (NZQF Level 4)
Diesel Motor Mechanic
A certificate at NZQF Level 4 or higher
Dairy Farming or Livestock Farming strands of the New Zealand Certificate in Agriculture (Level 4)
Dairy Cattle Farmer
New Zealand Certificate in Automotive Electrical Engineering (Level 4)
N/A
Automotive Electrician
New Zealand Certificate in Heavy Automotive Engineering (NZQF Level 4)
N/A
Diesel Motor Mechanic
New Zealand Certificate in Agriculture (Level 4) with a strand in Dairy Farming or Livestock Farming
N/A
Dairy Cattle Farmer
If you applied for your student visa before 12 May 2022
Work out if your qualification is acceptable
If your qualification is Level 7 or higher
If you studied at Levels 4 to 6
If you studied English language
Note
You do not need to support a graduate's Post Study Work Visa application or provide us with any information when you hire them.
Many graduates will move straight from a student visa to a Post Study Work Visa. They can start working for you before their student visa expires, as long as they only work the hours allowed by their student visa. You can find this information in VisaView. In most cases, they will be able to work full-time from the end of their course until their student visa expires.
Working holiday visas
Working holiday visas allow young people from recognised countries to work and travel in New Zealand, normally for up to 12 months.
Citizens of Canada can stay for up to 23 months. Citizens of the United Kingdom can stay for up to 36 months.
To hire someone on a working holiday visa, you do not need to make them a job offer before they get their visa or provide us with any information when you hire them. They can work in almost any job, with a few exceptions, such as sex work.
They cannot accept a permanent job offer while on a New Zealand working holiday visa. If you want to hire an overseas person to work in New Zealand longer term, or for a permanent job, they will need a relevant work visa, such as the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV).
Work visas
If you want to hire an overseas person to work in New Zealand longer term, or for a permanent job, they will need a relevant work visa, such as the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV).
Options for hiring people from overseas
Other visa options are available that allow people from overseas to work in New Zealand. Find out what these are:
Visas for working in New Zealand
Someone from overseas already in New Zealand on a work visa can work for you if:
- they have an open work visa — that is, their visa is not based on a job with a specific employer, or
- before they start working for you, they:
- apply to change the conditions of their current visa so you can hire them, or
- get a new visa that lets them work for you.
If they do not have an open work visa, they can only work for you if you are the employer named on their visa.