April 8, 2020
– 09 April 2020 Queen City Law is pleased to be doing a webinar on topical Immigration and Employment Law considerations in the new normal. You can review the topics that were covered by Marcus, Bradley and Max here. If you have any queries, you can contact Marcus, Bradley or Max to discuss. Marcus Beveridge – [email protected] Bradley So – [email protected] Max Shin – [email protected] We have taken care to ensure that the information given is accurate, however it is intended for general guidance only and should not be relied upon in individual cases. Professional advice should always be sought […]
April 8, 2020
By Max Shin and Tina Hwang What we previously saw in movies and news abroad has struck Kiwi homes (literally) as COVID-19 has now reached New Zealand. This particular strain of the coronavirus has impacted our businesses, finances, social movements, and our livelihoods. Employers and employees may struggle to make sense of the new norm as the pandemic brings uncertainty. The New Zealand Government recently escalated the situation to a “level 4” lockdown requiring all businesses to close unless they qualify as an “essential business”. This historic event will change how we conduct business in New Zealand, but what does […]
April 5, 2020
Over the last decade or so, we predict that around $10 billion has been invested into New Zealand under the Investor 1 and Investor 2 Immigration Categories. In numerical terms that equates to $10,000,000,000. This is hardly chump change. In rough terms, it is less money than New Zealand’s richest man Graeme Hart is apparently worth. Queen City Law has been at the forefront of this wave of millionaires and the odd billionaire to New Zealand. We believe that we have acted on more successful Investor 1 applications than any law firm in New Zealand. Most of our clients have […]
April 3, 2020
– 03 April 2020 Border Closure As with many other nations around the world, New Zealand closed its borders hoping to flatten the curve of COVID-19 cases in the country as much as possible. The only means of entry into New Zealand currently is if you are a citizen or permanent resident returning to New Zealand from overseas. Details of who may travel into New Zealand during this closure can be found on our earlier blog, New Zealand’s borders are now closed and on Immigration New Zealand’s website. Since then, Immigration New Zealand has provided further instructions for Australian citizens or permanent […]
March 31, 2020
– 31 March 2020 The Government has developed and rolled out an economic response package in response to COVID-19. For employers, perhaps the most critical parts of this package are the Wage Subsidy Scheme (“the Scheme”) and the COVID-19 Leave Payment (“the Leave Payment”). Under the Scheme, all New Zealand employers, contractors, sole traders, self-employed persons, registered charities, and incorporated societies are eligible for a wage subsidy for their staff. The aim of the Scheme is to provide a wage subsidy to protect businesses from closing-down and to ensure employees are paid at least 80% of their salary or wages. […]
March 26, 2020
– 26 March 2020 Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Arden has announced the decision of the NZ Government to close New Zealand’s borders to anyone who is not a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident. As of 11:59pm 19 March 2020, the only people who can enter New Zealand are the following: Citizens of New Zealand; and Permanent residents; and People who were granted residency and are already still in New Zealand; and People returning to New Zealand for their second or subsequent residency visas; and Immediate family* of any of the above; and Citizens of Australia; and […]
February 12, 2020
INZ have recently announced the full details of the Parent Residency Visa (PRV) category, slated to open on 24 February 2020. The PRV will be limited to 1000 applicants a year. The PRV will be a two-step process. First, interested applicants must submit an Expression of Interest (EOI). This is not the residence application. EOIs are drawn out of the pool at random, and if INZ is satisfied that the selected individuals meet the PRV requirements (based on the information recorded in the EOI) INZ will invite the applicant to apply by issuing an Invitation to Apply (ITA). Once you […]
January 28, 2020
The Parent Resident Visa (PRV) was a type of visa where parents of New Zealand citizens or residents would be able to live with their New Zealand based children here. The idea behind this visa was to make New Zealand more attractive to highly skilled migrants who would be able to gain residency or citizenship here due to their contribution to New Zealand. These highly skilled migrant workers would be more likely to choose New Zealand as their new home if they knew they could later support their parents to join them. However, this visa was closed in 2016 after […]
January 28, 2020
When asked to describe New Zealand, many people think of the “clean and green” image that has been advertised by Tourism New Zealand for the last few decades. This is one of the driving forces behind people looking to visit, work or move permanently to New Zealand. Another factor is that Kiwis are generally considered to be a friendly and relaxed people. New Zealand’s natural beauty combined with Kiwis’ affable nature is an alluring drive for tourists and people looking to move to New Zealand. A recent ranking by The Corruption Perceptions Index, a ranking of countries from least to […]