Foreword

The face of New Zealand is changing continuously. With nearly one in four New Zealanders born overseas, New Zealand is a country that has been built on immigration. Permanent migrants have and will continue to play a vital role in our development as we seek to attract the skills and talent that will help grow our nation. As a small trading nation, our connections to the global community are important and migrants help New Zealand to stay connected with the rest of the world.

Successful immigration has to create win-win situations for migrants and the receiving country; good experiences in their first few years in New Zealand are critical for migrants themselves and for New Zealand. It is important to government that immigration policy is evidence informed and underpinned by solid research.

The Longitudinal Immigration Survey: New Zealand (LisNZ) is the most comprehensive research study of permanent migrants that has been conducted in New Zealand to date, tracking 7,000 people over their first three years as permanent residents here. The findings in this report suggest that immigration has been good for our new residents, judging from how well settled and satisfied they are. Immigration has also been good for New Zealand, judging from 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. They are well educated, with nearly half holding an advanced vocational or university degree. The employment rate for permanent migrants is generally high, with almost all skilled principal applicants in employment. Newcomers 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 others to come to New Zealand.

'New Faces, New Futures: New Zealand' is the first in a series of reports from the LisNZ research programme, which raises our understanding of the settlement pathways for our new residents. I look forward to further publications from the LisNZ research programme over the coming years.

Christopher Blake
Secretary of Labour