Migration Trends and Outlook 2007/08
CONCLUSIONS
Migration is of critical importance to New Zealand. New Zealand has one of the highest per capita inflows of migrants, particularly permanent migration, in the OECD. New Zealand also has one of the highest outflows of citizens per capita.
Migration provides employers with access to the skills and talents needed to grow New Zealand businesses. However the level of contribution that migrants make to the New Zealand workforce depends upon both the quantity and quality of these migrants. New Zealand's residence policy aims to contribute to economic growth through enhancing the overall level of human capability in New Zealand, encouraging enterprise and innovation, and fostering international links, while maintaining a high level of social cohesion.
New Zealand also expresses many of it's international obligations and relationships through immigration policy; such as our commitment to refugee resettlement and our long-standing relationships with our Pacific neighbours.
It remains vital to monitor trends in migration to New Zealand as well as understand the global environment that migration takes place in. This monitoring enables an understanding of the success of current policies, the responsiveness of migrant behaviour to changes in New Zealand's immigration policy, the wider environment in which this migration takes place and possible consequences global trends may have for New Zealand.
In this report we have seen that New Zealand is a successful migrant-receiving country with increases in migrant flows. Migrants continue to come to New Zealand for a variety of reasons including study, travel, work, and a new life. The majority of permanent migrants were accepted under the Skilled/Business Stream. Although the global environment is competitive, especially for highly skilled migrants, opportunities exist for New Zealand in the current economic climate if New Zealand's economy is more resilient or less negatively affected than other potential destination countries.
