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Government confirms new pathways to residency for skilled migrants

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Key points

  • Two new residence options for skilled migrants already working in New Zealand have been announced
  • Pathways will be introduced mid-2026, with further details coming
  • Skilled Work Experience pathway – for those with 5 years total experience, 2 years in NZ at 1.1x median wage
  • The pathway recognises practical skills and real-world experience over formal qualifications
  • The Restaurant Association is welcoming the changes after years of advocacy, and will monitor implementation closely

The Restaurant Association is pleased that the government has announced changes aimed at keeping skilled overseas workers who are already contributing to our businesses in New Zealand. The Association has long advocated for immigration pathways that attract, recruit and retain skilled overseas talent to help bolster our domestic staff shortages.

The new Skilled Migrant Category reforms, set to kick in from August 2026, introduce two pathways that could make a real difference for hospitality operators struggling with staffing challenges and skills shortages.

Skilled Work Experience pathway

A new Skilled Work Experience pathway recognises that not all skilled workers need a university degree to add value. If you’ve got talented chefs, restaurant managers, or other skilled team members who’ve been with you for a while, this could introduce a pathway to residency.

The requirements are:

  • Migrants must work in skilled roles (ANZSCO skill level 1 to 3)
  • Five years of directly relevant work experience overall
  • At least two years working in New Zealand earning 1.1 times the median wage

For many hospitality businesses, this means that experienced head chefs, sous chefs, restaurant managers, and other senior team members could have a clear path to residency.

These changes will help ensure experienced workers can help to upskill our domestic hospitality workforce by sharing their skills, without worrying about expiring visas. These changes should help operators retain that institutional knowledge and experience that’s so crucial for maintaining service standards and training the next generation of hospitality professionals.

Final details are still to come

We’ll need to wait almost nine months for these changes to take effect, which is frustrating when businesses are struggling with staffing right now.The Government indicates it will place additional eligibility restrictions on some occupations “to ensure the new pathways focus on where skilled and experienced migrants are most needed,” and we don’t yet know what this may look like.

The government has also announced other improvements to the existing system:

  • Reduced work experience requirements for some current pathways – from a maximum of 3 years to a maximum of 2 years. (This helps improve the international competitiveness of the SMC settings.)
  • Increased points for New Zealand university-level qualifications, making it easier for graduates to transition to residence.
  • Removal of the increased wage rate requirement, meaning workers need to maintain median wage levels rather than meeting higher thresholds when applying.

For hospitality operators, this represents a shift towards recognising practical skills and real-world experience – something our industry has been calling for and will help us to build a sustainable workforce. These changes recognize that skilled, experienced workers who’ve already proven themselves in our market should have a path to stay and continue contributing.

While the finer detail is still to come, after years of advocacy, we’re hopeful we are finally seeing policy that acknowledges the contributions of our industry’s workforce.

The Restaurant Association will continue advocating to ensure these changes deliver real benefits for our members.

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