Care and Transport Work to Residence Visas

New Zealand provides dedicated residence pathways for eligible workers in specified care workforce and transport occupations.

These pathways recognise people who have completed a substantial period of qualifying employment in New Zealand and meet the applicable occupational, wage, employer and immigration requirements.

The two residence visas are:

Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa
Transport Work to Residence Visa

Applicants generally need at least 24 months of qualifying New Zealand work experience within the 30 months immediately before applying.

We can assess your occupation, employment history, remuneration, and supporting evidence to determine whether your work may qualify.

Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa

The Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa may be available to people who have worked in an approved care workforce occupation in New Zealand for the required period.

Applicants must generally:

Be aged 55 or younger
Have worked in New Zealand for at least 24 months within the 30 months immediately before applying
Have held a visa permitting them to undertake the qualifying work
Have been paid at least the applicable care workforce wage rate
Be working in, or hold an acceptable job offer for, an approved care workforce occupation
Work for, or have an offer from, an accredited employer
Hold employment that is permanent or fixed-term for at least 12 months
Meet the English-language requirement
Be in acceptable health
Be of good character

An eligible partner and dependent children aged 24 or younger may generally be included in the residence application.

Approved Care Workforce Occupations

The approved care workforce occupations currently include:

Māori Health Assistant—Kaiawhina (Hauora)
Disabilities Services Officer
Residential Care Officer
Aged or Disabled Carer
Nursing Support Worker
Personal Care Assistant
Therapy Aide
Child or Youth Residential Care Assistant
Diversional Therapist

Having a similar job title does not automatically establish eligibility. Immigration New Zealand may examine the applicant’s actual duties, work setting, employment documents and occupational classification.

For example, a person described by their employer as a caregiver may still need to demonstrate that their duties correspond with one of the approved occupations.

The 24-Month Work Requirement

Applicants generally need 24 months of qualifying employment within the 30 months immediately before submitting the residence application.

The 24 months do not necessarily need to be completed continuously. Qualifying employment may be accumulated over separate periods, provided the required total is completed within the applicable 30-month window.

Certain periods of legally entitled leave may count, including:

Annual leave
Bereavement leave
Parental leave
Other qualifying statutory or contractual leave

A period during which the applicant was not working may not count, although the surrounding employment may remain eligible.

Because Immigration New Zealand assesses the 30 months immediately before the application date, the timing of the residence application can be important. Delaying an application may cause earlier qualifying employment to fall outside the relevant period.

Can Employment in Other Occupations Count?

In some circumstances, part of the required 24 months may be completed in another approved residence occupation.

This can include eligible work in:

A Green List Tier 2 occupation
An approved transport occupation
Employment paid at least twice the applicable median wage

The applicant must still satisfy the requirements applying to that employment, including the relevant wage requirement.

Work in an unrelated occupation that does not fall within one of the permitted categories will not normally count towards the qualifying period.

Care Workforce Wage Requirements

The applicant must have received at least the applicable care workforce wage rate during the period being claimed.

The relevant rate can depend on:

When the applicant started counting qualifying work
The wage requirement applying at that time
When the applicant’s work visa was granted
Whether the five-month grace-period rule applies
Whether the applicant changed employer, occupation or visa
Whether there was any reduction in pay or working hours

Under the current settings, applicants may generally continue using the wage rate that applied when they began accumulating qualifying employment. They do not necessarily need to meet a later increased rate when applying for residence.

A grace-period provision may also allow an applicant to use the rate that applied when their work visa was granted if they began earning at least that amount within five months of the visa being approved and the employment remains within the applicable 30-month period.

Every period of employment and remuneration should be reviewed carefully before an application is submitted.

Transport Work to Residence Visa

The Transport Work to Residence Visa may be available to eligible workers who have completed the required period of qualifying New Zealand employment in an approved transport occupation.

Applicants must generally:

Be aged 55 or younger
Have worked in New Zealand for at least 24 months within the 30 months immediately before applying
Have held a visa permitting them to undertake the qualifying work
Have met the applicable wage requirement
Be working in, or hold an acceptable job offer for, an approved transport occupation
Work for, or have an offer from, an accredited employer
Hold employment that is permanent or fixed-term for at least 12 months
Meet any prescribed qualification or certification requirements
Meet the English-language requirement
Be in acceptable health
Be of good character

An eligible partner and dependent children aged 24 or younger may generally be included.

Current Approved Transport Occupations

The current approved Transport Work to Residence occupations are:

Ship’s Master

A Ship’s Master must meet the prescribed employment, wage, work-experience, and maritime-certification requirements.

The applicant must hold an accepted qualification or certificate recognised by Maritime New Zealand, such as the relevant:

Skipper Restricted Limits qualification with the required endorsement; or
Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping certificate for the applicable vessel and duties

Deck Hand

A Deck Hand must meet the prescribed employment, wage, work-experience and certification requirements.

The applicant must hold an accepted Maritime New Zealand certificate, such as an applicable:

Qualified Deck Crew Certificate of Proficiency; or
Deck Watch Rating Certificate of Proficiency

Holding maritime employment without the required certificate may not be sufficient.

Former Transport Occupations and Transitional Eligibility

The Transport Work to Residence pathway previously covered a wider range of occupations.

Changes took effect in April 2024. Certain workers who had already entered the pathway may retain potential eligibility under transitional arrangements.

This can include some people who:

Already held an eligible Accredited Employer Work Visa
Had applied for an eligible AEWV and were subsequently approved
Held an eligible open work visa and had already commenced qualifying employment
Began accumulating qualifying work before the relevant change took effect

Formerly approved occupations included certain bus-driving and other transport roles such as:

Truck driver ANZSCO code: 733111
Aircraft refueller ANZSCO code: 733112
Furniture removalist ANZSCO code: 733113
Tanker driver ANZSCO code: 733114
Tow truck driver ANZSCO code: 733115

However, eligibility depends on the exact occupation, employment commencement date, visa application and approval dates, remuneration and transitional instructions.

A former transport occupation should not be assumed to remain eligible merely because the applicant has completed two years of employment.

Transport Wage and Work-Experience Requirements

The applicant must generally have been paid at least the wage rate applying to the transport occupation when the qualifying period began.

For current maritime occupations, this will ordinarily involve the applicable median-wage-based requirement.

Different historical requirements may apply to former eligible transport occupations. For example, an eligible bus driver covered by the transitional provisions may have been subject to a specified sector wage rate.

If an applicant’s remuneration falls below the applicable rate, the affected employment may stop counting. The employment may begin counting again if the remuneration later meets the required rate.

Historical wage records should therefore be checked against:

The occupation
The employment dates
The visa held
The rate applying when qualifying work began
Any subsequent change of employer or position
Any period during which the applicant’s pay fell below the required level

Changing Employer During the Qualifying Period

Changing employer does not necessarily restart the entire 24-month period.

Qualifying employment may continue to count if:

The new employment is in an acceptable occupation
The applicant holds the required immigration permission
The new employer meets the applicable accreditation requirement
The applicant continues to receive at least the required wage rate
The new duties correspond with the claimed occupation
Any occupational registration or certification remains valid

However, changing employer, occupation, duties, location or remuneration can affect both the applicant’s work visa conditions and residence eligibility.

Seek advice before starting new employment, where possible.

English, Health and Character Requirements

The principal applicant must meet Immigration New Zealand’s English-language requirement for skilled residence.

English may be demonstrated through the following:

Citizenship
Study and recognised qualifications
Approved English-language test results

An eligible partner and dependent children aged 16 or older must generally demonstrate the required level of English or pay for English-language tuition where permitted.

The applicant and included family members must also meet the applicable health and character requirements. Medical examinations, chest X-rays and police certificates may be required.

Potential health or character concerns should be identified before the application is submitted.

Including Your Partner and Children

An eligible partner and dependent children aged 24 or younger may generally be included in a Care Workforce or Transport Work to Residence application.

Evidence may be required to establish:

The partnership is genuine and stable
The couple is living together
A child meets the applicable dependency requirements
The identity and relationship of each family member
Health and character
English-language eligibility or payment for tuition

A family member who holds, or is applying for, a temporary visa based on their relationship with the principal applicant may also need to be declared and included as required.

Common Application Problems

Care and Transport Work to Residence applications can encounter difficulties when:

The applicant’s duties do not match the claimed occupation
The employer used an informal or inaccurate job title
The applicant was paid below the required rate for part of the qualifying period
Some work falls outside the 30-month window
There are unexplained gaps in employment
The applicant changed employer without the appropriate visa permission
Payslips conflict with IRD or bank records
The current employment is not sufficiently long-term
The employer is not accredited
A maritime qualification or certificate does not meet the prescribed requirement
A former transport occupation does not meet the transitional rules
Insufficient evidence has been provided to establish hours, duties or remuneration

A detailed employment chronology can help identify these issues before the application is lodged.

How We Can Help

Our Licensed Immigration Advisers can assist with:

Determining whether your occupation is approved
Assessing whether your duties match the claimed occupation
Calculating the 24-month qualifying period
Reviewing the 30-month application window
Checking current and historical wage requirements
Assessing the five-month wage grace period
Reviewing employment agreements and job descriptions
Checking employer accreditation
Assessing former transport occupations under transitional provisions
Reviewing Maritime New Zealand qualifications and certificates
Organising employment and remuneration evidence
Preparing and submitting the residence application
Including eligible partners and dependent children
Responding to Immigration New Zealand concerns
Advising on health, character or English-language issues

Our assessment considers your complete employment and immigration history rather than relying only on your current job title.

Start Your Residence Assessment

Care and Transport Work to Residence eligibility depends on much more than completing two years of employment.

Your occupation, duties, visa history, employer accreditation, remuneration and supporting evidence must all satisfy the requirements applying to the relevant periods.

Contact Trusthaven Immigration for a professional assessment of your pathway and the next steps.