Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) Updates Dec 2025

Immigration continues to play a vital role in New Zealand’s economic growth, supporting businesses to address genuine labour shortages while prioritising opportunities for New Zealanders. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has released its AEWV Bimonthly Key Messages for December 2025, highlighting significant progress in processing times, system improvements, compliance activity, and sector demand.

Below is a summary of the key developments and what they mean for employers and migrant workers.

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AEWV Overview: Strong Performance and Faster Processing

Since the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme launched in July 2022, INZ has approved more than 173,401 AEWV applications. As at 30 November 2025, New Zealand has:

• Over 27,000 accredited employers

• More than 82,100 AEWV holders working across key industries

INZ has made substantial improvements across all three AEWV stages since November 2024:

• Employer accreditation: processed in an average of 2 days

• Job checks: processed in an average of 3 days

• AEWV applications: processed in an average of 15 days

These gains have been achieved while maintaining strong decision quality and risk management.

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Operational Change: Police Certificates Now Mandatory

From 8 December 2025, INZ introduced a new operational requirement:

• AEWV applicants must submit a valid police certificate at the time of application

• Police certificate receipts are no longer accepted

• Exceptions apply only to Fiji, Hong Kong, and Israel

This change is designed to reduce processing delays and improve overall decision quality.

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Processing Statistics for 2025

Employer Accreditation

• Approval rates remained consistently high throughout 2025, ranging between 92% and 95%

• Average processing times reduced to 5–6 days by the end of the year

Job Checks

• Approval rates increased steadily, reaching 94% by November 2025

• Average processing times reduced from 17 days in January to 6 days by year-end

AEWV Applications

• Approval rates remained strong at 89–93%

• Average processing times stabilised between 10–19 days, depending on volume

• Monthly arrivals consistently supported workforce needs across regions

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Key Sector Highlights (1 January – 4 December 2025)

Construction

• 92% job check approval rate

• 21,749 job tokens issued

• 12,168 AEWV approvals (93%)

Hospitality

• 6,362 job checks approved (89%)

• 13,161 job tokens issued

• 7,928 AEWV approvals (90%)

Health

• 94% job check approval rate

• 8,622 job tokens

• 4,244 AEWV approvals with an exceptional 97% approval rate

Primary Industries

• 3,052 job checks approved (94%)

• 7,530 job tokens

• 3,314 AEWV approvals (90%)

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Maximum Continuous Stay: What Employers Need to Know

The AEWV is designed as a temporary solution to address skill shortages.

Key rules include:

• The shortest maximum stay is 3 years, applying to skill level 4 and 5 roles without residence pathways

• After reaching the maximum stay, workers must spend 12 months outside New Zealand before applying again

• Employers must not employ workers beyond their visa expiry or maximum stay

• Employing someone unlawfully may jeopardise accreditation status

INZ encourages employers to:

• Monitor visa expiry dates

• Plan workforce transitions early

• Support workers in exploring alternative visa or residence pathways where available

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National Occupation List (NOL): Gradual Transition

The National Occupation List (NOL) replaced ANZSCO as New Zealand’s official occupation classification system in November 2024, with further updates in July 2025.

• The immigration system is still primarily based on ANZSCO

• Transitioning to the NOL is being implemented in stages

• 87 new occupations at skill levels 1–3 are currently recognised under NOL for AEWV purposes

INZ will continue to provide guidance as the transition progresses.