Skilled work
Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV)
The main work visa. An accredited employer offers you a job, Immigration NZ checks the pay is at market rate, and you can stay up to 5 years. The blanket median-wage threshold was removed in 2025.
Path to settlementCan lead to residence via Green List Tier 1 or Tier 2, or via the Skilled Migrant Category resident visa.
Requirements and sources
- A job offer from an INZ-accredited employer; the role must pass a Job Check with an approved pay range.
- No blanket minimum median wage for most roles — the job must simply be paid at least the market rate for that job.
- Either 2 years' relevant work experience, or a qualification at NZQCF level 4 or higher; a bachelor's can be in any field.
- Up to 5 years for skill level 1-3 or Green List roles; 3 years for skill level 4-5, then 12 months outside NZ.
- English is required only for skill level 3-5 roles. Occupations use ANZSCO, with the National Occupation List phasing in.
- Fee from NZD 1,540; the visa can lead to a resident visa via the Green List or the Skilled Migrant Category.
- How the degree matters
- A bachelor's degree meets the skill threshold in any field and removes the 2-year experience requirement. Green List roles and occupational registration also short-cut the evidence requirements.
Sources: Accredited Employer Work Visa (Immigration NZ) · Wage rates for work visas (Immigration NZ)
Skilled work
Green List (Straight to Residence and Work to Residence)
A list of roles New Zealand actively wants. Tier 1 roles can apply for residence immediately; Tier 2 roles can apply after two years of working in New Zealand in that role.
Path to settlementThis IS the fast residence route — Tier 1 immediately, Tier 2 after 2 years in the role.
Requirements and sources
- Tier 1, Straight to Residence: apply for a resident visa immediately if you hold the role and meet its requirements.
- Tier 2, Work to Residence: apply for residence after 2 years working in that role in New Zealand.
- Requirements vary by role — a qualification benchmarked to the NZQF, occupational registration, or specified experience.
- Fields covered include health and social services, engineering, ICT and telecommunications, construction, trades, agriculture, science and business.
- The official search tool lists roughly 215 role titles across both tiers (approximate — INZ publishes no headline count).
- Holding a Green List role also removes the need for extra skill evidence on an AEWV.
- How the degree matters
- Most Tier 1 roles are degree-and-registration professions (doctors, engineers, teachers, ICT specialists). Trades sit largely in Tier 2, with experience or registration requirements.
Sources: Green List roles (Immigration NZ)
Points-based
Skilled Migrant Category resident visa
New Zealand's skilled residence visa, with 3 pathways: Points-based, Skilled Work Experience and Trades and Technicians. On the Points-based pathway you need 6 points, claimed from a qualification, occupational registration or income, plus a skilled job with an accredited employer.
Path to settlementGrants a resident visa; after 2 years you can apply for a Permanent Resident Visa with indefinite travel rights.
Requirements and sources
- Points-based pathway: 6 skilled resident points needed, claimed from ONE of: qualification, NZ occupational registration, or income.
- Qualification points: NZ master's 6; NZ bachelor's 5; international bachelor's 4. Non-degree level 7 or below scores nothing.
- Income points: 3 at 1.5x the SMC wage threshold, 4 at 2x, and 6 at 3x.
- The SMC wage threshold is NZD 35.00 an hour from 9 March 2026, so 3x is NZD 105.00 an hour.
- Up to 3 extra points for skilled New Zealand work experience (2 years earns 3 points).
- Must be 55 or younger, with a job or job offer from an accredited employer. Fee from NZD 6,450.
- Skilled Work Experience pathway: at least 5 years of relevant work experience, including 2 years in New Zealand, in a job paid at least 1.1 times the SMC wage threshold; no qualification needed. A separate Trades and Technicians pathway also exists.
- How the degree matters
- Your degree sets your points directly: an international bachelor's earns 4 of the 6 needed; the other 2 can come from skilled NZ work experience. Points can instead be claimed from NZ occupational registration or income.
Sources: Skilled Migrant Category resident visa (Immigration NZ) · Pay rates for the Skilled Migrant Category (Immigration NZ)
After studying there
Post Study Work Visa
Post-study work rights after studying in New Zealand. A bachelor's degree or higher gives up to 3 years of completely open work rights — any job, any employer, anywhere in the country.
Path to settlementNo direct path; it buys time to find an accredited employer and move onto an AEWV or the Skilled Migrant Category.
Requirements and sources
- Degree at NZQCF level 7 or higher: you must have studied full-time in NZ for at least 30 weeks, and work rights are fully open.
- Stay of up to 3 years depending on what you studied. Fee NZD 1,670.
- Non-degree level 7, or level 4-6 qualifications, must be on the separate list of qualifications eligible for a Post Study Work Visa.
- Those lower-level holders get a conditional visa and must work in a job related to what they studied.
- You must show at least NZD 5,000 for living expenses, and apply within 3 months of your student visa expiring (6 months for doctorates).
- The visa can only be held once.
- How the degree matters
- A level 7 bachelor's or above is the dividing line: it unlocks fully open work rights, while lower qualifications are restricted to work related to the field studied.
Sources: Post Study Work Visa (Immigration NZ)
Youth mobility
Working Holiday Visa
New Zealand runs working holiday schemes with 44 countries. South Africa is not one of them, so this route is entirely closed to South African passport holders.
Path to settlementNot applicable to South Africans.
Requirements and sources
- Schemes exist with 44 countries including the UK, Ireland, Germany, France, Canada, the USA, Japan, Brazil and Chile.
- South Africa does not appear anywhere on Immigration NZ's official list of eligible countries.
- INZ states plainly that if your country is not listed, it cannot grant you a working holiday visa.
- Other routes open to South Africans include study followed by a Post Study Work Visa, the Accredited Employer Work Visa and the Skilled Migrant Category.
- How the degree matters
- Not applicable — the scheme is nationality- and age-based.
Sources: Who can apply for a working holiday visa (Immigration NZ)
