Points For Work Experience

Can points be claimed for work experience?

Yes, you can claim up to 50 points (65 including bonus points) for your skilled work experience if you were suitably qualified and the job is a substantial match to an ANZSCO occupation.

However, since the mid-2017 policy changes, relevant work experience must also be related to your qualifications for you to claim points. This means that you need to be suitably qualified before gaining the work experience for which points are claimed for residence under the Skilled Migrant Category. If you don't have a relevant recognised qualification, your relevant prior work experience may be assessed as qualified and used as a substitute for a relevant qualification.

Bonus points

Under the Skilled Migrant Category, you may sometimes fall short of 10 points needed to meet the threshold. However, after 12 months of skilled employment in New Zealand, you could be eligible for 10 bonus points, which can make you qualify for residence under the current policy. This is because you are already settled in New Zealand and contributing to the economy.

If your occupation is on the Long Term Skill Shortage List and you meet its requirements in terms of qualification, experience, or occupation registration, you may also be able to claim up to 15 bonus points, irrespective of whether your job offer in New Zealand is relevant or not.

Is it possible to claim points for work experience without a job offer?

In case you don't have an offer of skilled employment, your work experience must have been lawfully acquired in a "comparable labour market" unless it appears on an Essential Skills in Demand List and you meet the requirements. For Immigration New Zealand (INZ), the countries listed below are considered to be labour markets comparable to that of New Zealand: