News centre
How changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) may affect you
The incoming changes to the AEWV on 10 March 2025 will impact both employers who hire migrants and workers who are applying for an AEWV.
A number of changes will be made to the AEWV in March 2025.
Changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) and median wage
Check this page to learn how these changes may affect you.
Impacts for employers
If you have engaged with MSD but not applied for a job check
If you apply for a job check on or after 10 March 2025, you no longer need to provide an Engagement Check from the Ministry of Social Development (MSD), even if you have received one.
From 10 March 2025, when you apply for a job check you must declare that you have engaged with MSD in good faith. This includes interviewing any candidates you think could be suitable. If you have an engagement report provided by Work and Income before 10 March 2025, you can keep this as evidence of your good faith engagement with them.
If you applied for a job check before 10 March 2025, but want it processed under the new instructions
We will continue to assess job check applications against the current immigration instructions. However, if the March 10 changes will be more favourable for your job check application, we may consider:
- whether an exception is appropriate given the specific circumstances of the application,
- if an exception is not considered appropriate, we may decide to hold the application and make a decision after the new instructions come into effect.
You do not need to contact us to request an exception or for us to hold your job check application. We will contact you if we decide to hold your application.
If your job check application is in progress
Removal of median wage requirements
The previous pay requirements will still apply to job check applications in progress on 10 March 2025. However, if your job check is approved, the migrant you are hiring can apply for an AEWV at a lower wage rate. If you want to offer a migrant a lower wage rate, you do not need to contact us to update your job check application. You can offer the migrant the lower rate when you invite them to apply for an AEWV. The pay you offer must still meet the market rate.
Reducing the experience requirements for migrants from 3 to 2 years
This will make no difference at the job check stage. When you apply for a job check, you still need to state what qualifications and experience a migrant must have to do the job.
Changes to requirements for employers to engage with MSD
The requirement for you to engage with the MSD as part of your job check application still applies. If you have applied for a job check for an ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 role, you should have already completed this before submitting your job check application.
Recognition of higher ANZSCO skill levels
ANZSCO skill levels affect the labour market test requirements for job checks, including:
- whether you have to advertise the job for 14 or 21 days, and
- whether you have to engage with MSD.
Job checks in progress on 10 March 2025 will be assessed under the new instructions that treat some occupations as ANZSCO skill level 3. This means that you will not have to advertise a job for 21 days or engage with MSD for any job recognised as ANZSCO skill level 3.
If you apply for a job check and we match it to an ANZSCO skill level 4 role that will be recognised at ANZSCO skill level 3 after 10 March, we will not ask you to provide evidence showing that you engaged with MSD or advertised the job for 21 days.
For example, if you apply for a job check for a chef (ANZSCO skill level 3), but we match the job as a cook (ANZSCO skill level 4) we will not ask you to engage with MSD or advertise the job for longer, if your application is in progress on 10 March 2025.
If you have an approved job check but the migrant you are hiring has not applied for their AEWV
Removal of median wage requirements
AEWV applications made on or after 10 March do not have to pay NZD $29.66 an hour (the February 2023 median wage) or any lower amount that was part of a sector agreement or wage exemption. If you applied for a job check on or before 9 March 2025, you can offer a lower pay rate than what we approved in the job check application. This new pay rate must be at least the market rate for the job. We will assess this during the migrant's AEWV application.
Reducing the experience requirements for migrants from 3 to 2 years
From 10 March 2025, the experience requirement for migrants will be 2 years, instead of 3 years.
This means that if your job check application included an experience requirement that is:
- more than 2 years, you can only hire migrants who meet this requirement.
- 2 years or less, you can hire migrants with 2 years of experience.
Recognition of higher ANZSCO skill levels
Migrants applying for an AEWV must meet English language requirements if they have been offered an ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 job. From 10 March 2025, English language requirements will no longer apply for any ANZSCO skill level 4 job that will be treated as an ANZSCO skill level 3 job. This applies even if the job check was approved before 10 March 2025.
Impacts for AEWV workers
If you applied for an AEWV before 10 March 2025, but want it processed under the new instructions
We will continue to assess AEWV applications against the current immigration instructions. However, if the March 10 changes will be more favourable for your AEWV application, we may consider:
- whether an exception is appropriate given the specific circumstances of the application,
- if an exception is not considered appropriate, we may decide to hold the application and make a decision after the new instructions come into effect.
You do not need to contact us to request an exception or for us to hold your AEWV application. We will contact you if we decide to hold your application.
If your AEWV application is in progress
Removal of median wage requirements
If you apply for an AEWV on or after 10 March 2025, you do not have to paid at least NZD $29.66 an hour (the February 2023 median wage) or any lower amount that was part of a sector agreement or wage exemption. If you have applied for an AEWV you can provide us with updated employment information while your visa is being processed, including a change to the pay rate.
You must agree to the new pay rate, and it must:
- meet the market rate, and
- be at least NZD $23.15 an hour (the New Zealand minimum wage).
Reducing the experience requirements for migrants from 3 to 2 years
If you have an AEWV in progress on 10 March 2025, you should have already provided evidence of 3 years of work experience with your application. However, if you have only provided 2 years of work experience, we can accept this if your application is in progress on 10 March 2025.
Increasing the visa duration for ANZSCO skill level 4 and 5 AEWV holders to 3 years
If you are applying for an ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 job and your AEWV application is in progress on 10 March 2025, your visa will have a longer length of 3 years if it is approved.
What is ANZSCO and how to find your skill level
Increasing the income threshold for supporting dependent children
The higher income threshold will apply if you apply for your dependent child's first visa after 10 March 2025. If your dependent child already has a visa, or if they have an application in progress on 9 March 2025, they will be assessed using the previous lower income threshold.
Recognition of higher ANZSCO skill levels
If you are applying for an AEWV you must meet English language requirements if you have been offered an ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 job. From 10 March 2025, English language requirements will no longer apply for any ANZSCO skill level 4 job that will be treated as an ANZSCO skill level 3 job. This applies even if your employer's job check was approved before 10 March 2025.
If you already have an AEWV
Applying for another AEWV with a reused job check
You may be eligible for another AEWV from 10 March 2025, if your current AEWV was issued for less than 3 years.
From March 10 2025, the maximum visa length for AEWVs will match the total time you can stay in New Zealand on 1 or more AEWVs (your maximum continuous stay).
When you apply for another AEWV, you can reuse a job token if you are staying in your current job, in the same location and working for the same employer.
Jobs paid less than the median wage
You can apply for another AEWV to stay in New Zealand for either 3 or 5 years if:
- you are paid less than NZD $29.66 an hour (the February 2023 median wage), and
- your job is covered by a sector agreement or wage exemption.
You can stay in New Zealand for 3 years if your job is ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5, and for 5 years if your job is ANZSCO skill level 1, 2 or 3.
What is ANZSCO and how to find your skill level
Sector agreements and hiring migrants on an AEWV
Supporting dependent children
The higher income threshold will apply if you apply for your dependent child's first visa after 10 March 2025. If your dependent child already has a visa, or if they have an application in progress on 9 March 2025, they will be assessed using the previous lower income threshold.
Bringing family if you have an AEWV
Recognition of higher ANZSCO skill levels
Once you get an AEWV, the ANZSCO skill level of your job determines your eligibility to support your partner or dependent children for long-term visas. Most ANZSCO skill level 4 and 5 AEWV holders are not able to support visas for family.
If you have an AEWV for one of the jobs that will be treated as ANZSCO skill level 3, you will be able to support family for visas from 10 March 2025 even if you got your AEWV before this date. You will also be able to apply for another AEWV and stay in New Zealand for 5 years in total instead of 3.