Media Release

7 May 2009

Travel or work experience in New Zealand plays a big part in attracting new migrants to settle here.

A total of 86 percent of new migrants had been to New Zealand before gaining residence and over half had worked here previously on a temporary work permit according to Department of Labour’s latest research findings.

The importance of family connections and friends already living in New Zealand are also significant for new residents. Two-thirds of all migrants had contacts in New Zealand before coming to live in New Zealand, and 40 percent reported having family already living here. Over half of all migrants said their main source of information about New Zealand came from their family or friends already living New Zealand, and many stayed with family on arrival.

Most new residents to New Zealand intend to stay here long term; 88 percent of migrants intended to stay in New Zealand for over five years. New Zealand was also the first choice for virtually all of its new residents; almost all migrants (99 percent) reported that they had applied for permanent residence in New Zealand only during the past three years.

These findings are based on the Department’s latest survey of over 7000 new migrants six months after they took up permanent residence in New Zealand.

Migrants were also found to make a strong economic contribution. The research findings confirm that:

• Migrants use their skills in New Zealand. Skilled principal migrants had the highest employment and labour force participation rates and the lowest seeking work rates of all migrant groups. Most Skilled principal migrants were working at the same skill level as they did in their previous country.
• The partners of our new residents also bring valuable skills and experience to New Zealand. The majority of Skilled secondary and Family partner residents were employed, and forty-two percent of Skilled secondary residents held an advanced vocational qualification or a university degree.
• English language skills contribute to the economic and social integration of migrants by improving their employment opportunities and providing a wider access to social networks

“The findings in this report suggest that immigration has been good for not only the new residents but also for New Zealand, judging from how well residents have settled and the number of skilled migrants filling shortages in the labour market. This research demonstrates that new residents complement the needs of the New Zealand labour force by contributing their valuable skills and experience. New migrants also enjoy living here - nearly all of them reported feeling settled and expressed a high level of satisfaction with life in New Zealand. Moreover, migrants’ endorsement of New Zealand as a desirable destination is reflected by the large proportion that have already recommended and encouraged other family and friends to come to New Zealand” says Lesley Haines, Group Manager Immigration.

The report, New Faces, New Futures: New Zealand, presenting results from the Longitudinal Immigration Survey New Zealand (LisNZ), is the first in a series on the settlement experiences of new migrants. Subsequent reports will track the experiences of these same migrants, eighteen months and three years after they take up permanent residence.

Ms Haines says that this report adds substantially to the initial Hot off the Press 1 released by Statistics New Zealand in May 2008. A second Hot off The Press on outcomes of migrants at 18 months is due for release at the end of May 2009.

A full copy of the LisNZ report can be found on the Department of Labour’s website at www.immigration.govt.nz/research.

ENDS.