Skilled Migration - Review
Yesterday the Office of the Auditor General (OAG for short) published its review in to the Skilled Migrant Category, which comes as a bit of a precursor to the Minister’s promises to review this system in the near future. The report highlights things that our industry has been saying for many years and something I have been particularly vocal on - there is a definite lack of clarity and simplicity in the process which leads to longer processing times (in some cases) and challenges in filing applications that are ‘decision’ ready and can be swiftly dispatched.
These issues sit on top of very complicated and difficult to navigate technology platforms - the irony being that those platforms have had huge funding poured in to them. The report makes it fairly clear that this group of applicants (skilled migrants) are a focus point for New Zealand, particularly given the international hunt for talent that continues, despite softening labour markets.
If you want to read the full report, we have a copy here, although we have also dissected some of the key points below, as well as how this might all tie in with a future review of the Skilled Migrant Category, which the Minister has already confirmed is underway. Admittedly, its not very exhilarating reading (unless you are someone like me), but it does highlight how important skilled migrants are to New Zealand, which is something Governments and other pockets of our country have long overlooked.
The Role of Skilled Migrants
We see a lot of these sorts of reports and particularly when Immigration New Zealand repeatedly makes headlines for processing delays, which over the years have been the thorn in the systems side. Admittedly with the new Straight to Residence program and lower overall numbers, applications under this category have been processed much quicker and it has become a bit of a selling point globally, but one not well advertised. In this report however, it was great to see that the importance of skilled migrants and their role in lifting NZ’s game economically and socially was recognised at the outset.
“Skilled residence visa applications make up a small proportion of the total number of visa applications processed each year, but these applicants are a strategically important group who are in demand internationally. It is important that these applicants’ experiences of applying for visas are well-managed because skilled residence visa systems can give countries a competitive edge in the global skills market.”
In terms of the reference to small numbers, the report bundles skilled migrants together as a component of all visas processed, which is a little bit misleading because we have two very separate streams of entry - Temporary and Residence. Temporary Visas include visitors, students and workers and absolutely make up the vast majority with Resident Visas being far smaller. To give that some context and as the report outlines, in 2023 (post lockdowns), INZ processed 892,164 applications, of which only 12,231 were for skilled residence outcomes. Note that this is applications and not people included in those applications.
A Key Piece of the Puzzle
Skilled migration is a small part of our total visa approval number, but an absolutely crucial one.
As a proportion of Residence outcomes however, the skilled migrant system, is the backbone and generates the largest pool of Resident Visa approvals. Other categories such as partnership, other family, investor and so forth make up the difference of course.
Whilst all Resident Visas are important, the skilled stream, brings us the talent, investment and human capital we need and it was refreshing to see that the Auditor General’s report recognised that level of value and equally that we have to appreciate we are not the only country in the world, competing for this talent. This is something the Productivity Commission reported on in 2022, particularly in the post-covid scramble for skills as countries pulled off their masks and started to breath again.
“…highly skilled migrants are more mobile than other groups of migrants. They can choose to go elsewhere, particularly if other countries make their paths to residence clearer and easier.”
The notion that good quality skilled migrants have choices is something previous Governments have overlooked (at their peril), instead choosing to believe that people are queuing up at our borders waiting to settle here. I refer to this often as the Lord of the Rings effect, where for a long period of time New Zealand, in part thanks to its global cinema profile, was a highly sought after country - but things change and ultimately our competitiveness is now less about the chance of a new migrant spotting a hobbit and more about how quickly and efficiently we can bring these people in.
As the world becomes more chaotic, those with skills and money to move, are increasingly looking at options, where they can establish they qualify quickly, navigate the process efficiently and settle in a hurry. You only have to look at the US elections, which saw an increase in INZ website traffic of 6,500% to see that people are considering greener pastures.
Of course we also have to find a balance because our country can only support so many people, particularly as we still need to work on expanding the infrastructure to support future population growth and we constantly need to manage risk, but those caveats shouldn’t become barriers to being able to attract the right talent. We also need to consider whether our “hear and now” approach which requires applicants to secure work before applying is the right one, or whether we should revisit previous visa pathways that recognised talent, even before the job was locked in.
While this recent report doesn’t provide any direction on the nature of visa policies specifically and instead focuses on the system to deliver them, it does highlight (rightly in my view) that any system we create or manage, to attract skilled migrants needs to be built from the point of view of those migrants as much as the politicians and officials in charge.
Review Recommendations
Reviews are great, but only if they actually lead to some form of positive change. In this particular review, the focus was not on the policies we have to bring in skilled migrants, but instead the focus was on the experience those skilled migrants have, when they choose to apply. In some ways, this can be more important than policy anyway, because rules and criteria do need to adapt and change, but how they are delivered is something that needs to consistently work well.
How Can We Do Better?
If we acknowledge skilled migrants are crucial to our visa system, what we can do better, to attract more of the right applicants?
Whilst policy has to work effectively to deliver the right kind of applicants, how those applicants are moved through the system is also important in making sure we remain competitive.
So what did the Auditor General suggest, that might help to make this process more of a red carpet than a closed door.
More Visibility On Progress - The first recommendation, which is actually a pretty obvious one, is giving applicants (and their advisers) more visibility as to the progress of an application. Sometimes when you file an application for Residence, it can feel a bit like throwing a penny in a well and waiting for that audible ‘ping’, when it hits the bottom. Only this particularly penny takes a lot longer to get there. Having better visibility on progress would help to reduce the anxiety applicants face, whilst waiting and also give them more control over their relocation planning.
Better Reporting - Understanding the flow of migrants through the process, the outcomes and also critically the skill levels we are bringing in is crucial and so the second recommendation encourages INZ to actually specifically look at skilled migrant applicants as a separate group, rather than just a factor of a larger visa number.
Make Better Use Of Information - Somewhat obvious, but if you have access to applicants, advisers and other stakeholders involved in this process, then the information they can provide, will help to shape and deliver a better system. This is something I have been pushing for and working with INZ on, to include advisers in the process far more than have been relied on in the past. We see, hear and feel how the system works and we can help to redefine it in to the future.
Performance Reporting - Reporting on how well the Skilled Migrant Category is working is something that needs to improve, and equally has been somewhat hidden away previously because of very lengthy and embarrassing timeframes. With the new, faster Straight to Residence programs in place, where higher value applicants are processed very quickly, I think this is something to be advertised.
Long-Term Outcomes - If you asked most people in New Zealand what a “Skilled Migrant” is, they would probably have no clue, and certainly have no idea as to how our skilled migrant system works or how it contributes to the overall economic and social performance of the country. Providing some sort of reporting on these outcomes and the skills mix we are achieving is a very good idea.
Of all these recommendations, most of which refer to providing applicants and other stakeholders involved with more clarity in terms of the process, the one that resonates the most is the need for the system to interact more widely with the people involved.
“It is important for Immigration New Zealand to get a wide range of feedback from stakeholders with experience of, and interests in, the skilled residence visa system, including applicants, staff, advisers, and employers.”
As the Minister recently put it, when referring to discussions with MBIE and the senior officials, within INZ, “the information is out there, not in here” and she is right. To understand how the system works, whether it is achieving the results the country needs and whether the experience gives us a platform to market to other, potential applicants, the best people to explain that are the applicants and advisers who deal with it day in and day out. The report provided a lot of obvious answers to questions that have been raised for decades, but the fact that there was a specific focus on INZ looking outwards, rather than inwards, is very encouraging.
Future Of The Skilled Category
Reviews are great, but only if they actually lead to some form of positive change. In this particular review, the focus was not on the policies we have to bring in skilled migrants, but instead the focus was on the experience those skilled migrants have, when they choose to apply. In some ways, this can be more important than policy anyway, because rules and criteria do need to adapt and change, but how they are delivered is something that needs to consistently work well.
The timing of this report fits nicely with the Minister’s proposed review of the Skilled Migrant Category and the acknowledgement that the actual policy we have is leaving some very good quality candidates behind. I hope that in reviewing the actual criteria and requirements, the powers that be, take in to account this reports recommendations to also consider the delivery.
There are plenty of very experienced advisers out there, willing to contribute to developing and refining the system and a fair few applicants, who have gone through this process, who would probably have a few words to say as well. We can only hope that when change comes, it takes all of these factors into account.
Until next week!
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