AEWV employer accreditation and job check process

Before you can ask a migrant to apply for an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV), you must apply for employer accreditation, advertise the job if you need to, and apply for a job check.

Employer accreditation for the AEWV

Alert

The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) requirements are changing in 2025. Changes include removing the median wage requirement, reducing work experience requirements and redesigning the job check stage.

For more information about the announcement, including a list of key changes:

Changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) and median wage

Apply for employer accreditation

The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) is designed to ensure New Zealanders are first in line for jobs and makes it easier for employers who are accredited to hire skilled migrants where genuine skill or labour shortages exist.

Businesses that want to employ people who have or are applying for the following visas must also be accredited: Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa, Work to Residence Visa, Transport Work to Residence Visa, Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa or Straight to Residence Visa.

You can apply for 1 of 3 different types of accreditation depending on your business and how many migrants you want to hire:

standard accreditation is for New Zealand businesses who want to hire up to 5 migrants
high-volume accreditation is for New Zealand businesses who want to hire 6 or more migrants
triangular employer accreditation is for New Zealand businesses who place migrants with controlling third parties while being the direct employer — there is no limit to the number of migrants you can hire.

Check if you can apply for AEWV employer accreditation and what type

Before you apply you need to ensure:

your business meets our accreditation rules
you have all the information and documents you need, including a New Zealand Business Number, Business Industry Classification code and Inland Revenue number.

Applying for AEWV employer accreditation: process steps

You will pay a fee when you apply for employer accreditation.

Paying for AEWV employer accreditation and job checks

We process your employer accreditation application

We email you when we have processed your application.

If your AEWV employer accreditation or job check application is declined

Advertise the job and engage with Work and Income

If your application is approved, before you can apply for a job check (step 3) you may need to:

advertise to check there are no New Zealand citizens or residents available for the job
engage with Work and Income, if the job is Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) skill level 4 or 5.

Advertising the job before you apply for a job check

Engaging with Work and Income before you apply for a job check

Apply for a job check

Once your accreditation is approved, you can submit an application for a job check. The job check application can include multiple positions for the same job, pay, location and minimum requirements.

If you advertised the job, you have to apply for a job check within 90 days of your job advertisement closing.

Job checks are valid for 6 months or until you no longer have accreditation.

Applying for a job check: process steps

Note

Before you apply for a job check, you must check if there are suitable and available New Zealanders to do the job. To be suitable and available they must:

be qualified for the job or able to be trained on the job
live close to where the job is or be able to move there
have a practical way of travelling to the job, like a bus or their own car
be available for full-time work in the hours you need.

You must make genuine attempts to attract and recruit New Zealand workers. When you apply for a job check, we make sure you advertised the job, unless you are exempt.

You will pay a fee for each job check you apply for.

Paying for AEWV employer accreditation and job checks

We process your job check application

We email you when we have processed your application.

Check our wait times page to find up to date information on how long we are taking to process applications.

Work visa and employer accreditation wait times

If your AEWV employer accreditation or job check application is declined

Ask the migrant worker to apply

Once the job check is approved, you can:

check the migrant has the required skills, work experience or qualification for the job
offer them the job and ask them to apply for their AEWV using Immigration Online.

Check if a migrant is suitably qualified for an AEWV

Recruiting and supporting a migrant worker to apply for an AEWV: process steps

Meet your obligations and help AEWV workers to settle

You must:

give your AEWV workers information about living and working in New Zealand
support your AEWV workers to settle in New Zealand
not pass on any recruitment costs to your AEWV workers
continue to meet your obligations as an AEWV employer during your accreditation.

Accredited employer requirements to help AEWV workers settle in New Zealand

Meeting your AEWV accredited employer obligations

Renew your accreditation

Your initial accreditation lasts for 12 months before you need to renew it.

Renewing your AEWV employer accreditation

If things change

If your circumstances change, you can apply to change your accreditation type at any time, for example if you need to upgrade from standard to high-volume accreditation.

If you have already applied to renew your accreditation, and you need to change your accreditation type, you can withdraw your application if we have not made a decision yet.

Renewing your AEWV employer accreditation

If we suspend or revoke your employer accreditation:

you cannot hire new migrants — we contact any affected migrants who are not in New Zealand as they may not be able to travel here on their AEWV
any AEWV workers that you currently employ, and who are already in New Zealand, can continue to work for you.

If you are placed on the Employer or Immigration stand-down lists, we try to contact any affected AEWV workers if we have their current contact information.

Employers on stand-down — Employment New Zealand

Immigration stand-down list

If you have been given interim employer accreditation but then withdraw your renewal application, you will keep your interim accreditation until it expires.

Help for employers

Our employer helpline is open between 08:00 and 18:00, Monday to Friday.

Freephone from New Zealand landlines: 0508 967 569

Paying for AEWV employer accreditation and job checks

Find out what it costs to apply for employer accreditation to employ migrants on an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) and get a job check or renew your accreditation.

If your AEWV employer accreditation or job check application is declined

If we decline your Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) employer accreditation or job check application, you may be able to submit a new application or request a reconsideration.