In 2016/17, New Zealand experienced a net annual permanent/long-term (PLT) migration gain of 72 300 people, the highest on record and an increase of 4.7% from the 69 100 recorded in 2015/16. This was due to a low negative net migration of New Zealand citizens combined with large net positive migration of non–New Zealand citizens (73 600 people), the highest level ever. This resulted from a near doubling in the number of non-New Zealand citizen PLT arrivals from 56 100 in 2009/2010 to 99 200 in 2016/17 and more moderate trends in departures. The outlook is for net immigration to fall in 2017/18 and decline further in 2018/19.
The number of people approved for residence in New Zealand fell by 8% to 47 700 in 2016/17, 60% of whom were in skilled/business programmes, 31% in family and around 8% in humanitarian/international programmes. Driving the decrease was a decision to address increased demand on the residence programme, which included closing the Parent Category to new applications and lowering the cap on the number of family residence visa approvals to 4 000 places over two years. This led to a 63% reduction in the number of Parent Category approvals for 2016/17. In addition, policy changes to reduce demand saw a 6% decrease in Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) approvals. Under the SMC, a prospective migrant is allocated points based on a list of factors, such as education, age, skilled work experience and job offer. In October 2016, the number of points a prospective migrant required in order to be invited to apply for residence under the SMC was increased from 140 to 160. China, India, the United Kingdom and the Philippines continue to be the largest nationalities for residence approvals. Together they accounted for just over half of all approvals in 2016/17. Finally, of the 4 000 visas delivered under the humanitarian/international policy stream, 1 200 were granted to refugees, a third of whom were Syrians, and 1 100 were issued to Samoans under a quota.
In 2016/17, 209 200 work visas were issued, of which two thirds went to first time migrants. This was an increase of 9% in all work visas issued from 2015/16. India, the United Kingdom, China and Germany continued to be the largest origin countries. Those approved to work in New Zealand under the Essential Skills policy (labour market-tested temporary workers) rose by 4% from 2015-16, the fifth year-on-year increase since the financial crisis. Working Holiday Scheme approvals represented a third of all work visa approvals, while 14 700 visas were granted under the horticulture and viticulture seasonal work policy. Post-study work visas (+26% to 27 900) and work to residence visas (+42% to 4 500) experienced the largest growth in percentage terms.
In 2016/17, 48 200 new international students (tertiary and secondary) were approved for study in New Zealand, down 3% from 2015/16. This was the first time international students made up 53% of all admitted international students. China, the top origin country, recorded a 10% increase in all international students from 2015/16 (new student visas for Chinese students grew 5% in 2016/17). International students have become an important source of skilled migrants for New Zealand, as in other OECD countries.
In 2016/17, 430 people sought asylum in New Zealand, up 28% from 2015/16. China and Turkey were the largest source countries of asylum claims in 2016/17.
Changes to the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) became effective after July 2017. The changes introduced a salary threshold and greater recognition of work experience to ensure that the SMC prioritises higher-paid and higher-skilled migrants. Changes to employment-based temporary work visas, including salary thresholds, were also announced in May 2017.
A new Global Impact Visa (GIV) pilot category came into effect in November 2016. Under GIV, the government has partnered with the Edmund Hillary Fellowship to attract and support high-impact entrepreneurs, investors and start-ups – most of whom would not otherwise qualify under existing policy settings – to establish innovative ventures in New Zealand. The visa will run as a four-year pilot and is limited to 400 people.
In December 2016, changes to the migrant investor policy were made to encourage investments that provide greater economic benefits for New Zealand, by incentivising investment into growth-oriented sectors.
Following changes to immigration regulations and policy, online forms were released allowing the electronic submission of most student, work and visitor visa applications via Immigration Online. As of August 2017, 60% of visa applicants were able to apply online, expanding to 80% of all visa applicants from early 2018.
