Migration Trends and Outlook 2010-2011
6 SKILLED/BUSINESS STREAM
Highlights for 2010/11
- Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) approvals accounted for 52 percent of all residence approvals (21,212).
- The United Kingdom remains the largest source country of skilled migrants (17 percent), although the number has been decreasing steadily since 2004/05 (down 68 percent). India is now the second largest source country of skilled migrants to New Zealand.
- SMC approvals came from 110 different source countries, although the majority (71 percent) were from just six countries.
- 487 people were approved for residence through the Business Immigration Policy: 359 through the Entrepreneur Category and 128 through the Investor Category.
6.1 Introduction
Although New Zealand's economy has been affected by the global economic recession, skilled migrants are still an important part of New Zealand's overall development. Labour shortages remain, particularly in some skilled areas. New Zealand firms continue to report that skilled labour is becoming increasingly difficult to find and could constrain growth. New Zealand needs skilled migrants to contribute to productivity, skills acquisition, diversity, and growth in a range of industries.
In 2010/11, 23,145 people (57 percent of residence approvals through the New Zealand Residence Programme) were approved for residence through the Skilled/Business Stream.[46] Of these people, 21,212 (92 percent) were approved through the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC), 1,432 (6 percent) through the Residence from Work Category, and 487 (2 percent) through the Business Immigration Policy.
This chapter provides a high-level analysis of residence approvals through the Skilled/Business Stream in 2010/11.
6.2 Skilled Migrant Category Approvals
The SMC is the main category in the Skilled/Business Stream. It is a points-based system designed to ensure that people migrating to New Zealand have the skills, qualifications, and work experience that New Zealand needs.
Those applying as a principal applicant may also have secondary applicants on their application. In 2010/11, 47 percent of those who were approved for residence through the SMC were principal applicants. An average of 2.1 people were approved per application.
A person who is interested in applying for residence through the SMC must first submit an expression of interest. An expression of interest is entered into a points-based pool if the applicant:
- meets the prerequisites for health, character, and English-language proficiency, and
- has 100 or more points.[47]
Points are awarded for employability and capacity-building factors, including skilled employment in New Zealand, relevant work experience, qualifications, and age. In addition, applicants can claim bonus points for other factors, including having work experience or qualifications in an area of absolute skills shortage, having employment outside Auckland, or having a New Zealand qualification.
People whose expressions of interest have been selected from the pool may be issued an invitation to apply for residence under the SMC. Figure 6.1 shows the number of selected expressions of interest by selection date in 2010/11, with an average of two migrants per selected expression of interest. For further details, see Appendix P.
Figure 6.1: Number of selected expressions of interest (EOIs) by selection date, 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
6.2.1 Source country of Skilled Migrant Category approvals
In 2010/11, 21,212 people were approved for residence through the SMC. SMC approvals accounted for 52 percent of all residence approvals in 2010/11, down from 58 percent in 2009/10.
Although people from 110 different source countries were approved in 2010/11, 71 percent were from just six countries. Figure 6.2 shows that the United Kingdom remains the largest source country of skilled migrants (17 percent) with India the second largest (13 percent). The proportion from the United Kingdom has been declining in recent years whilst India has shown consistent growth in the last 3 years.
Figure 6.2: Skilled Migrant Category approvals by source country, 2008/09 - 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
6.2.2 Age and gender of Skilled Migrant Category approvals
Principal applicants aged 20-29 gain the maximum points (30 points) for age. This is reflected in Figure 6.3 with 40 percent of principal applicants aged 20-29 and 37 percent aged 30-39 in 2010/11. The small proportion of principal applicants aged more than 50 years (5 percent) reflects the maximum age limit of 55 years under the SMC.
Secondary applicants under the SMC include the partners and dependent children of the principal applicant. Figure 6.3 shows that 51 percent of secondary applicants were aged under 20 years.
Figure 6.3: Age of approved Skilled Migrant Category principal and secondary applicants, 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
The median age of all principal applicants through the SMC was 32 years in 2010/11. Of the top six source countries, South Africa had SMC principal applicants with the highest median age at 38 years, while China's were much younger with a median age of 27 years (see Figure 6.4). Almost all principal applicants from China in recent years were aged 20-29. Most are former international students. However, with the decline in the numbers of Chinese students in 2008/09 and 2009/10, the proportion in this age group has decreased in 2010/11 to 79 percent, down from 85 percent in 2009/10. As the number of Chinese students has increased in 2010/11, it is likely that future years will see this proportion rise again.
Figure 6.4: Median age of Skilled Migrant Category approvals by applicant type, 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
In 2010/11, 11,234 males (53 percent) and 9,978 females (47 percent) were approved under the SMC. Almost two-thirds (65 percent) of approved principal applicants were male compared to 42 percent of approved secondary applicants.
6.2.3 Points claimed by Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants
In total, 8,931 SMC principal applicants (90 percent) were awarded points for a job or job offer in New Zealand (78 percent for their current employment and 12 percent for an offer of skilled employment). This proportion is higher than the 81 percent who were awarded points for a job or job offer in New Zealand in 2009/10.
In 2010/11, 8,372 principal applicants (85 percent) were approved onshore. Of the onshore applicants, 97 percent had a job offer or current skilled employment in New Zealand. The remaining 1,531 principal applicants were approved offshore (15 percent), and 52 percent had a job offer or current skilled employment in New Zealand.
Most principal applicants (70 percent) gained points in 2010/11 for relevant work experience. Almost half (47 percent) gained bonus points for New Zealand work experience in 2010/11. Sixteen percent gained additional bonus points for work experience in an identified growth area or an area of absolute skills shortage.
Of the top six source countries of principal skilled migrants, Fiji had the highest proportion of principal applicants with a job or job offer (98 percent) and the United Kingdom had the lowest (85 percent). South Africa had the highest proportion of principal applicants with relevant work experience (94 percent) and China had the lowest (31 percent) (see Figure 6.5). Migrants from China and India are less likely to have work experience because they tend to be younger (on average) and most transition to residence via study rather than from a work visa.
Figure 6.5: Proportion of Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants who gained points for a job or offer or relevant work experience by source country, 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
In 2010/11, 73 percent of SMC principal applicants gained points for their qualifications (67 percent with a basic qualification and 6 percent with a postgraduate qualification).
In recent years, New Zealand has strengthened the SMC policy to allow international students to stay and work in New Zealand. In 2010/11, 27 percent of SMC principal applicants gained bonus points for a recognised basic New Zealand qualification, 2 years of full-time study towards a New Zealand recognised qualification, and/or a recognised postgraduate New Zealand qualification. Seventy-two percent of those who gained these bonus points were aged 20-29. Over a third (37 percent) were from China, a large decrease from 2009/10 (56 percent) and a similar proportion were from India (34 percent), a large increase from 2009/10 (19 percent).
Of the top six SMC source countries, China had the highest proportion of principal applicants with a basic or postgraduate qualification (96 percent) and the highest proportion of those gaining bonus points for their qualifications (90 percent) (Figure 6.6).
Figure 6.6: Proportion of Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants who gained points for qualifications by source country, 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
Of the 8,931 principal applicants with a job or job offer, 8,108 also specified a region of employment. Around half (51 percent) of the principal applicants who specified a region of employment claimed bonus points for a job or job offer outside the Auckland region. This is slightly lower than the 55 percent who claimed these points in 2009/10. The main regions of employment for SMC principal applicants in 2009/10 were Auckland (49 percent), Wellington (12 percent), and Canterbury (9 percent) (see Figure 6.7).
Figure 6.7: Region of skilled employment for Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants, 2008/09 - 2010/11
Note: Includes principal applicants who were awarded points for a job or job offer and specified a region of employment.
Source: Department of Labour.
Table 6.1 shows the points that SMC principal applicants were awarded in 2010/11. Different criteria operate within each factor. For more information about the SMC policy, see Appendix D (Table D.1) and the Immigration New Zealand website.
For a comparison of points claimed by SMC principal applicants in 2009/10 and 2010/11, see Appendix Q.
| Factor |
Percentage gaining points (%) |
|---|---|
| Skilled employment | |
| Current skilled employment in New Zealand for 12 months or longer | 40 |
| Current skilled employment in New Zealand for fewer than 12 months | 38 |
| Offer of skilled employment in New Zealand | 12 |
| Bonus points for employment or an offer of employment | |
| Identified future growth area | 3 |
| Area of absolute skills shortage | 11 |
| Region outside Auckland* | 51 |
| Partner employment or offer of employment | 1 |
| Relevant work experience | |
| 2 years | 17 |
| 4 years | 13 |
| 6 years | 11 |
| 8 years | 8 |
| 10 years | 21 |
| Bonus points for New Zealand work experience | |
| 1 year | 20 |
| 2 years | 15 |
| 3 years or more | 12 |
| Additional bonus points for work experience in an identified future growth area | |
| 2 to 5 years | 1 |
| 6 years or more | 1 |
| Additional bonus points for work experience in an area of absolute skills shortage | |
| 2 to 5 years | 6 |
| 6 years or more | 8 |
| Qualifications | |
| Recognised basic qualification | 67 |
| Recognised postgraduate qualification | 6 |
| Bonus points for qualifications | |
| Recognised basic New Zealand qualification | 26 |
| Two years of full-time study towards a New Zealand recognised qualification | 10 |
| Recognised postgraduate New Zealand qualification | 1 |
| Recognised qualification in an identified future growth area | 2 |
| Recognised qualification in an area of absolute skills shortage | 20 |
| Partner qualifications | 15 |
| Close family support in New Zealand | 7 |
| Age (20-55 years) | |
| 20-29 years | 43 |
| 30-39 years | 36 |
| 40-44 years | 11 |
| 45-49 years | 7 |
| 50-55 years | 4 |
| Total number of principal applicants | 9,903 |
- * The percentage is calculated from the 8,108 Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants who were awarded points for a job or job offer and specified a region of employment.
- Source: Department of Labour.
Occupation of Skilled Migrant Category principal applicants
The occupational group 'Professionals' was the most common for SMC principal applicants (41 percent). This was followed by 'Technicians and Trades Workers' and 'Managers', as shown in Table 6.2. Professionals made up the largest group of those who were approved offshore (68 percent). Professionals were also the largest group of those approved onshore (36 percent).
| Major group† | Number | Percent (%) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onshore | Offshore | Total | Onshore | Offshore | Total | |
| Professionals | 3,021 | 1,041 | 4,062 | 36 | 68 | 41 |
| Technicians and Trades Workers | 3,078 | 187 | 3,265 | 37 | 12 | 33 |
| Managers | 1,611 | 246 | 1,857 | 19 | 16 | 19 |
| Clerical and Administrative Workers | 292 | 20 | 312 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| Community and Personal Service Workers | 229 | 20 | 249 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| Other | 92 | 15 | 107 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Total‡ | 8,323 | 1,529 | 9,852 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
Notes:
* Main occupation is the job the applicant spent the most hours doing in the past 12 months.
† Major group is coded to the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO 06).
‡ Applicants whose occupation was not coded to ANZSCO 06 or was classified as a 'response outside the current definition of the labour force' were excluded from the total.
Source: Department of Labour.
The SMC attracted skilled migrants in a broad range of sectors in 2010/11. Some of the most common occupations were in health (nurses and generalist medical practitioners), hospitality (chefs, restaurant managers, bakers, and pastry cooks), retail managers and ICT (ICT support technicians, and software and applications programmers).
6.3 Residence from Work Category[48]
For migrants, working temporarily in New Zealand can be a step towards gaining residence and settling in New Zealand permanently. Principal applicants who are qualified in occupations that are in demand in New Zealand or who have exceptional talent in the arts, sports, or culture may gain a temporary work permit that enables them to transition to permanent residence. The associated Residence from Work Category includes the Talent (Accredited Employers) Work Policy, the Talent (Arts, Culture, and Sports) Work Policy, and the Long Term Skill Shortage List Policy.
Since April 2002, 13,458 principal applicants have been issued a Work to Residence visa through the talent work policies and the Long Term Skill Shortage List Policy. Of these principal applicants, 8,099 (60 percent) transitioned to permanent residence and a large proportion (62 percent) gained permanent residence through the SMC. The intent of the Work to Residence Policy is for applicants to transition to residence through the Residence from Work Category. However, as Table 6.3 shows, a large number chose transition to residence through the SMC.
| Residence category | Type of Work to Residence policy | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Talent (Accredited Employers) |
Long Term Skill Shortage List |
Talent (Arts, Culture, and Sports) |
||
| Total Work to Residence visas issued (April 2002-June 2011) | 9,339 | 3,845 | 274 | 13,458 |
| Total who gained residence (April 2002-June 2011) | 5,724 | 2,226 | 149 | 8,099 |
| Talent (Accredited Employers) | 39% | 1% | 1% | 28% |
| Long Term Skill Shortage List | - | 20% | - | 6% |
| Talent (Arts, Culture, and Sports) | - | - | 68% | 1% |
| Skilled Migrant Category* | 58% | 77% | 17% | 62% |
| Partnership Category | 2% | 2% | 8% | 2% |
| Other | 1% | 1% | 6% | 1% |
| Total | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
* Includes approvals through the former General Skills Category.
Source: Department of Labour.
Table 6.4 shows the number of people who gained residence through the Residence from Work Category in 2010/11 (1,432) was similar to the number in 2009/10 (1,446). Most were approved through the Talent (Accredited Employers) Work Policy (81 percent of principal applicants).
|
Residence from Work Category policy |
2009/10 | 2010/11 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Principal | Secondary | Principal | Secondary | |
| Talent (Accredited Employers) | 485 | 709 | 473 | 717 |
| Long Term Skill Shortage List | 96 | 120 | 98 | 117 |
| Talent (Arts, Culture, and Sports) | 16 | 20 | 10 | 17 |
| Total who gained residence | 597 | 849 | 581 | 851 |
Source: Department of Labour.
In 2010/11, the 1,432 people approved through the Residence from Work Category came from more than 40 countries. The main source countries of the 581 principal applicants were the United Kingdom (48 percent) and South Africa (12 percent), as shown in Figure 6.8.
Figure 6.8: Top source countries of approved Residence from Work principal applicants, 2008/09 - 2010/11
Source: Department of Labour.
6.4 Business Immigration Policy
The Business Immigration Policy aims to contribute to New Zealand's economic growth by increasing New Zealand's levels of human and investment capital, encouraging enterprise and innovation, and fostering international links.
The Business Immigration Policy comprises the Entrepreneur Category; the Employees of Relocating Business Policy;[49] and the Migrant Investment Policy. Further information on these policies is in section 1.5.1.
In 2010/11, 487 people were approved for residence through the Business Immigration Policy: 359 through the Entrepreneur Category (122 principal applicants) and 128 (42 principal applicants) through the Investor Category.
| Category | 2008/09 | 2009/10 | 2010/11 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneur | |||
| Entrepreneur Category | 380 | 311 | 345 |
| Entrepreneur Plus Category | 4 | 14 | |
| Investor | |||
|
Investor policies (before July 2009) |
33 | 17 | |
| Investor 1 Category | 9 | 33 | |
| Investor 2 Category | 30 | 95 | |
Note: Includes principal and secondary applicants.
Source: Department of Labour.
Table 6.6 shows the approvals by the top source countries from 2008/09 to 2010/11. The United Kingdom is the largest source country of both Entrepreneur approvals and Investor approvals. The number of Entrepreneur approvals from South Korea has increased 54 percent between 2008/09 and 2010/11 whilst the number of Entrepreneur approvals from China has decreased 55 percent over the same period.
|
Source country |
Entrepreneur Category | Investor Category | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 08/09 | 09/10 | 10/11 | 08/09 | 09/10 | 10/11 | |
| UK | 154 | 87 | 98 | 12 | 9 | 35 |
| South Korea | 56 | 69 | 86 | - | 4 | 8 |
| South Africa | 7 | 12 | 35 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| China | 42 | 24 | 19 | 6 | 3 | 14 |
| USA | 17 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 16 | 27 |
| Singapore | - | 1 | 5 | - | - | 9 |
| France | 6 | 14 | 13 | - | - | - |
| Netherlands | 5 | 6 | 12 | - | 2 | - |
| Other | 93 | 91 | 87 | 4 | 20 | 33 |
| Total | 380 | 315 | 359 | 33 | 56 | 128 |
Note: Includes both principal applicants and secondary applicants.
Source: Department of Labour.
The Long Term Business Visa Policy is a temporary immigration policy that caters for people who are interested in establishing a business in New Zealand, and may subsequently apply for residence through the Entrepreneur Category. People can also use the Long Term Business Visa Policy if they are interested in establishing a business in New Zealand, but are not living permanently in New Zealand.
In 2010/11, 384 principal applicants were granted a Long Term Business visa, a slight increase from 362 in 2009/10. Since the Long Term Business Visa Policy was introduced in March 1999, 6,022 principal applicants have been granted a Long Term Business visa. The number of Long Term Business visas granted has decreased considerably since the peak of 1,794 principal applicants in 2001/02. This is the result of a change of policy in 2002, raising the minimum English language requirements for the Entrepreneur Category.
Table 6.7 details the residence categories through which Long Term Business visa holders converted to residence. By 30 June 2011, 58 percent (3,489 principal applicants) had converted to residence. Of these conversions, 2,909 principal applicants (83 percent) converted through the Entrepreneur Category.
| Residence category |
Number of principal applicants |
Proportion of conversions (%) |
Proportion of LTBV principal applicants (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneur | 2,909 | 83 | 48 |
| Skilled Migrant* | 228 | 7 | 4 |
| Partnership | 141 | 4 | 2 |
| Investor | 57 | 2 | 1 |
| Other | 154 | 4 | 3 |
| Total conversions to residence | 3,489 | 100 | 58 |
| Total Long Term Business visa principal applicants |
6,022 | 100 |
* Includes approvals through the former General Skills Category.
Source: Department of Labour.
The rates of conversion to residence differ across the main source countries for Long Term Business visa holders. Figure 6.9 shows conversion rates to residence for the top seven countries. Fiji had the highest conversion rate (80 percent), followed by South Korea and China (both 61 percent).
Figure 6.9: Rates of conversion to residence by source country for Long Term Business visa (LTBV) holders, as at 30 June 2011
Source: Department of Labour.
[46] The Skilled/Business Stream categories are described in Appendix D, Table D.1.
[47] Expressions of interest that have 140 or more points are selected automatically from the pool, and many of these will include points for having skilled employment in New Zealand. Expressions of interest that have 100 or more points but less than 140 points, and include points for offers of skilled employment or current skilled employment in New Zealand, are also selected automatically.
[48] The Residence from Work Category is for applicants who are already in New Zealand on a Work to Residence visa and want to apply for residence. See Appendix D, Table D1 for further details.
[49] Numbers in this category were too small to report, so have been excluded from analysis.
