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Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa: how long it takes, what it costs, and whether it leads to permanent residence
Permanent Residence
Resident visa for skilled employment
Resident visa if you have a skilled job or job offer with an INZ-accredited employer and at least 6 skilled resident points from one skill category (occupational registration, a recognised qualification, or income), plus up to 3 extra points for New Zealand skilled work experience. An Expression of Interest is free; if invited, you have 4 months to apply. The visa lets you live, work and study in New Zealand indefinitely. A later Permanent Resident Visa (after at least 2 years on a resident visa) mainly removes travel conditions — it is a separate application. From 9 March 2026 the median wage used for this visa is NZD $35.00 an hour (revised periodically). From 24 August 2026 INZ will add a Skilled Work Experience pathway and a Trades and Technician pathway and change how the wage threshold is applied.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
We tell you when we re-read a route you follow, in the note from that check, with the official link.
Does Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa lead to permanent residence?
- Residency
Permanent residence on grant
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
Do you need a job offer for Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa?
- Job offer
Required
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
How many points do you need for Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa?
- Points
At least 6
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
How much does Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa cost to apply for?
- Application fee
From NZD 6,450
Visa page publishes 'From NZD $6450'. INZ's fees and levies page (rates as of 1 October 2024) states that immigration charges are a separate fee and levy, and that most Pacific fee-band rates are lower than rates paid by applicants from other countries — other variants exist. The International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy is not listed for this resident visa. Do not treat 6450 as the only possible charge.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
How long does Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa take to process?
- Processing time
No duration published; the authority points to a guidance tool
Open the authority's page for this fact
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
What does Immigration New Zealand actually require?
Quoted from the pages named beside each rule, not paraphrased.
- Age
You must be aged 55 or younger when you apply.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
- Language
Principal applicant: IELTS Academic or General Training overall 6.5 or more, or TOEFL iBT 79, PTE Academic 58, Cambridge B2 First / B2 First for Schools 176, or OET Grade C+ or higher in all 4 skills — in-person tests no more than 2 years old. Exemptions include citizenship of Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States with at least 5 years working or studying in one of those countries or in Australia or New Zealand, or a comparable bachelor's (2 years' residence while studying) or postgraduate (1 year) qualification from Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States. Partner and dependent children aged 16 or older: IELTS 5 or more (or listed equivalent) or pre-purchase English lessons. Children younger than 16 have no English requirement.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
- Points test
You need at least 6 skilled resident points from your skills and work in New Zealand. Claim 3 to 6 points from one skill category — occupational registration, qualifications or income — and up to 3 more points from skilled work experience in New Zealand if required.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
What Immigration New Zealand does not publish
We checked for each of these and the page carried no figure. The absence is recorded with the reason, so this page states nothing the authority does not.
Processing time
Resident-visa wait-times page (updated weekly): Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa average wait time 10 weeks (50% of applications) and most completed within 4 months (80%), calculated in working days. That is a recent-volume statistic, not a promised range, so no month range is stored. Previous stored 6–12 months was unsourced.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
Minimum education
A New Zealand level 7 bachelor's degree is one 3-point qualification path. Alternatives are occupational registration (3–6 points) or income at 1.5× / 2× / 3× the median wage (3 / 4 / 6 points). You cannot claim qualification points for a non-degree qualification at level 7 or below. Previous stored value 'bachelor' treated a degree as mandatory and has been removed.
Not yet verified against an official source
How it works
- 1Submit a free Expression of Interest; if invited you have 4 months to apply.
- 2A later Permanent Resident Visa is a separate application after at least 2 years.
What changed when we last checked this record
Route is open. EOI is free. Job must be with an accredited employer and meet the skilled-job test (ANZSCO 1–3 at the median wage, or ANZSCO 4–5 / jobs not in ANZSCO at 150% of the median wage; at least 30 hours a week; permanent or fixed-term for at least 12 months, or a contract or continuous contracts for at least 6 months). Median wage NZD $35.00 an hour from 9 March 2026 (https://www.immigration.govt.nz/live/resident-visas-to-live-in-new-zealand/skilled-residence-pathways-in-new-zealand/skilled-migrant-category-pathway-to-residence/pay-rates-for-the-skilled-migrant-category-resident-visa/). Visa grants residence: 'live, work and study indefinitely'. Permanent Resident Visa after at least 2 years is a later, separate visa that removes conditions (https://www.immigration.govt.nz/live/resident-visas-to-live-in-new-zealand/permanent-residence/becoming-a-permanent-resident-of-new-zealand/). Upcoming 24 August 2026 changes are not stored as current rules (https://www.immigration.govt.nz/live/resident-visas-to-live-in-new-zealand/skilled-residence-pathways-in-new-zealand/skilled-migrant-category-pathway-to-residence/2026-changes-to-the-skilled-migrant-category-resident-visa/). Previous stored age 18, bachelor minimum, USD 3000 fee, 6–12 month processing, and a 12-month PR pathway were unsourced or contradicted and have been removed.
Source: Immigration New Zealand · verified 2026-08-15
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