Entertainers Work Visa — Support a candidate's visa application
Before you can recruit overseas entertainment industry workers you must ask the relevant New Zealand entertainment union, guild or professional association for their agreement. To support your candidate's visa application you need to provide a written employment agreement.
What an employer needs to do
Genuine attempt to recruit
You must provide a reason the work cannot be done by New Zealanders.
You must provide evidence to support your reason for employing an overseas
- the overseas entertainer or performer is internationally recognised for their work or other contribution
- finance for the production is contingent on the overseas entertainer or performer’s involvement
- the production will bring wider economic benefits to New Zealand
- New Zealanders had the opportunity to audition or pitch for the work but were unsuccessful.
We accept the following reasons for employing overseas
You must provide evidence to support why you need to employ overseas entertainment workers instead of New Zealanders. You must get agreement from the industry's entertainment body before you offer an overseas entertainment worker a job. Overseas workers may be essential to the production for one of these reasons: You must explain why your overseas industry workers are essential to the production or presentation and provide evidence, such as documents that support your explanation. For example, if you need the overseas workers because finance or distribution depends on their involvement, you should provide written confirmation from a sales agent, distributor or key investor that this is the case. The benefits of employing overseas workers may outweigh any lost opportunities for New Zealanders, if their employment: When you apply you must: If employing overseas workers will result in lost job opportunities for New Zealanders, you must show us that any wider benefits to New Zealand would not be possible if you did not employ those workers. When you apply you must: If you considered hiring New Zealand entertainers before deciding to offer the work to overseas workers, your evidence must include any documents that show this. You need to provide documents that show New Zealand actors had the opportunity to take part in a casting round, including: If there was no casting round, you will need to explain why. You need to provide evidence you gave New Zealand directors an opportunity to pitch and the reason an international director was chosen. If you did not give New Zealand directors the opportunity to pitch, you need to explain why. You need to provide documents that show: If you did not consider New Zealand crew members, you need to explain why. You need to provide documents that show you considered employing New Zealand musicians, including as support acts. If you did not consider any New Zealand musicians, you need to explain why.
Employing overseas entertainers
Entertainment industry employers who want to hire overseas entertainment industry workers must explain why New Zealanders cannot do the work and provide evidence to support this.
Acceptable reasons for employing overseas workers
If workers are essential to the production
If the wider benefits outweigh any lost opportunities
If you considered hiring New Zealanders first
Job offer
You must provide a written employment agreement, which your candidate will need to support their application.
For each person you hire, you must provide a written offer of employment, or contract for services that:
- sets out the length of time they will need to be in New Zealand to do the work
- includes a schedule describing the work they need to do in New Zealand
- agrees to cover living and accommodation costs and the cost of your worker’s return home.
Referral for agreement
You must provide evidence that the relevant union or professional association has agreed to the engagement of the candidate, unless:
- the job is 14 days or less
- will be undertaken on an official co-production, or
- is with a company that holds entertainment industry accreditation.
Employer Supplementary Form
You must complete a Supplementary Form (Section J).
For each person you hire you must complete a Supplementary Form (Section J) of the ‘Performing Artists, Entertainers and Entertainment Industry Personnel Work Visa Application'.
Once section J is completed, give the form to your candidate, who will need to complete the rest of the work visa application.
What happens next
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Step 1: Candidate applies for a work visa
Your candidate's application will include a Supplementary Form, which you must complete.
You and your candidate will need to provide documents to support their application.
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Step 2: Wait for a decision
We make a decision about your candidate’s application as soon as we can. Find out how long these visas usually take to decide, in our Fees, decision times and where to apply tool.
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Step 3: Employee starts work
As soon as your candidate has been granted a visa, they can come to New Zealand and start working for you.
You can check they have a work visa by asking to see their visa label or letter, or using our online system.
Check someone can legally work for you
Prepare for when your workers from overseas arrive
Get organised before your new employee arrives in New Zealand. Put together information to help them settle into your workplace and life in New Zealand.From the first contact with your new employee to the time they arrive in New Zealand, be positive but realistic. Do not promise anything that you or New Zealand cannot deliver. You will only set migrants up for disappointment if life in New Zealand is not what they expected.
You can help your new migrant workers to prepare for work and life in a new country through giving them the information they need.
Some information is best provided before they leave and some when they arrive.
Much of this preparation will only need to be done once. If you hire migrant workers in the future, you will be very well prepared.
Where to start
If you are unsure of what things to consider, our checklist will prompt you with ways you can help your migrant employee. It includes things to do before they arrive, upon their arrival and during their first days at work.
Prepare information for your new staff
It pays to prepare some tailored content for your new migrant staff. If you don’t already have it, you may want to create:
- an orientation programme to introduce your workplace
- a welcome kit with local information about the region, accommodation and transport information.
You could also prepare existing staff for your new migrant employee by announcing their upcoming arrival on your website or staff communication channels, for example, noticeboards.
Use our resources to help your new staff
Send your new staff links to our tools and online resources to help your them plan their move before they leave their home country.
NZ Ready planning tool
Moving to a new country can be a daunting task for your new employee. The best way to help your new employee with their move is to guide them to NZ Ready, Immigration New Zealand’s free online planning tool. This tool asks a series of questions that will help them to create a comprehensive personalised to do list to follow.
Get ready for New Zealand — NZ Ready
Cost of living calculator
What it costs to live in New Zealand may be quite different from a migrant's home country. This tool helps migrants to understand the cost of living in various parts of New Zealand.
Think beyond the workplace
Provide information about life in New Zealand during the recruitment process. Your new employee needs to know what to expect in relation to:
- basics of life in New Zealand such as housing and healthcare
- schooling and employment opportunities for their partner and children
- community support available.
A happy, settled family makes for a happy and productive employee who is more likely to remain loyal to you.