Accredited Employer Work Visa

Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV)

The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) is the main job-based temporary work visa and involves 3 steps:

Step 1 – Employer Accreditation, where the employer’s credentials are assessed
Step 2 – the Job Check, where the job details and any job advertising are assessed
Step 3 – the migrant check, comprising the AEWV application, and is where the migrant’s credentials are assessed.

Minimum Pay Requirements

Effective 10 March 2025, the AEWV requires a visa applicant to be paid at the market rate for the job role, and at least at the NZ adult minimum wage ($23.95 ph effective 1 April 2026).

For employment that is remunerated on a salary basis the employment agreement must include a clause confirming the maximum number of hours to be worked in any week - and this number will be used by INZ to calculate the hourly payrate, and whether this at, or above, the NZ market rate.

Visa Duration

AEWVs are being issued for periods of 3 or 5 years, depending upon the ANZSCO skill level of the role. Existing AEWV holders may be able to extend their existing AEWVs out to a maximum of 5 years. This “extension” does not require the use of any Job Check.

Information on further changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa scheme which came into effect from 10 March 2025 (AEWV: Phase 2) can be found on our website.

Visa Processing Times

Processing times vary across the Job Check and AEWV application stages, depending upon the ANZSCO level of the role or the sector the role is in. ANZSCO, or the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations, is a system that classifies and describes different jobs based on tasks and responsibilities. It groups similar jobs into "occupations" and grades them from skill level 1 (most skilled) to skill level 5 (less skilled). E.g. Job Check and AEWV applications for Green List pathways and Skill Level 1 roles are being processed quicker than with other roles. (NB: the ANZSCO is being replaced this year with the National Occupation List (NOL) – details to be advised)

Processing times also vary across different occupational sectors, e.g., Health and Education sector roles are currently being prioritised than roles in other industries.

Current processing times for Employer Accreditation, Employer Accreditation Renewal, Job Check, and AEWV applications can be found on the INZ website.

Holders of post-study, partnership-based and working holiday work visas have open work rights and can work in any role (NB: working holiday visa holders cannot work in permanent employment but can work in casual and fixed term roles).