Employers are being held to account for committing immigration violations, including employing people in breach of their visa conditions or who are unlawfully in New Zealand, with 142 infringement notices issued to 139 employers, leading to a total of NZD $431,000 in penalties in the first year of the Immigration Employment Infringement scheme. 

Infringements also mean employers are unable to hire migrants for a minimum 6 months depending on the number of infringement notices the employer receives.

Acting General Manager, Immigration Compliance and Investigations, Michael Carley says that the scheme has enabled MBIE to tackle non-compliance more effectively and swiftly, ensuring that employers are aware of their responsibilities when it comes to hiring migrants.

“Before the scheme, there were limited tools for us to use to address lower-level immigration offending.” says Michael Carley.  “Now, employers can no longer claim they are unaware of the rules of hiring migrants, nor can they rely on their past compliance to escape the consequences. There are serious penalties for those who fail to follow to immigration laws.”

Michael Carley says that the top 3 industries to receive the most infringements are construction, hospitality, and the beauty industry.

Most of the infringement fees have ranged from NZD $1,000 to $3,000, but notably, 2 of the largest infringements issued during the year were for NZD $27,000 to a business in the mining industry for underpaying a significant number of migrant workers, and NZD $18,000 to a Wellington construction company who was found to have 5 migrants working in breach of their visa conditions, and a migrant who was unlawfully in New Zealand.

Michael Carley acknowledges that many employers do the right thing, however there is still a small number of employers who are not following the rules.

“When hiring migrants, it’s really important that employers check that their visa allows them to work in New Zealand. We strongly advise that all employers use our Visa View tool to verify the work rights of prospective employees. Taking the time to conduct this check could help avoid significant financial penalties and being stood down from hiring migrants for a time.”

For further information email media@mbie.govt.nz or call 021 860 173

Notes to the editor

Infringements can be issued for employing people in breach of their visa conditions, employing a person unlawfully in New Zealand, or failing to comply with a 10-day information request.

Infringements carry a minimum fee of NZD $1,000 for individuals and NZD $3,000 for corporations or other entities. Infringements also result in an automatic addition to the immigration stand down list. Being stood-down means employers cannot get their accreditation back or support visa applications during the stand-down period. Stand-down periods include: 6-month stand-down for a single infringement notice, an extra 6-month stand-down for each subsequent infringement notice and a 12-month maximum stand-down for multiple notices issued at one time.

Employers can hire migrants on open work visas while on the stand-down list.

Additionally, penalties can include the loss of accredited employer or Recognised Seasonal Employer status, as well as a temporary suspension from sponsoring further visas for migrant workers, depending on the number of infringement notices received by the employer.

Penalty fees go into the Government’s Consolidated Fund.

You can find more information about the Immigration Employment Infringement Scheme here: 

Immigration Employment Infringement Scheme