The AEWV is the visa most working Indians will use. It works in three stages that involve both you and your employer.
Before anything else, your employer must be approved (accredited) by Immigration New Zealand. This check confirms the business is legitimate, financially stable, and follows NZ employment law.
Check this first. Use the INZ accredited employer search tool to verify any employer before accepting a job offer. Some Indians receive job offers from non-accredited employers - sometimes genuine companies that simply have not completed the process, but sometimes fraudulent offers. This check takes 30 seconds and could save you months.
Standard accreditation covers businesses employing 5 or fewer migrants at a time. High-volume accreditation covers businesses with larger migrant workforces.
The accredited employer applies to INZ to have your specific job approved. INZ confirms the salary is fair for the role and region, and that the position meets requirements. For lower-skill roles (ANZSCO levels 4 and 5), the employer must demonstrate they attempted to hire a New Zealand worker first.
Once the Job Check is approved, you submit your AEWV application with your qualifications, experience documentation, health clearance, character documents, and where required, English language evidence.
From 23 June 2025, Indian university degrees are on the List of Qualifications Exempt from Assessment (LQEA). You no longer need to pay for or wait for an International Qualification Assessment. India sits alongside Germany, France, South Korea, Singapore, and Switzerland on this list. For Indian applicants, this removed one of the most significant cost and time barriers in the entire visa process.
From March 2025, the old blanket median wage requirement was removed. Employers must now pay:
The key point: employers cannot use this flexibility to underpay migrants. INZ checks that the salary reflects what a New Zealand worker would be paid for the same role.
If you want to bring your spouse on a work visa, you must earn at least NZD 26.85/hour. To include dependent children, you must earn at least NZD 55,844/year.
After you reach the maximum continuous stay, you must leave New Zealand for 12 months before applying again - unless you have secured residency by then.
If you receive a new job offer while on an AEWV, you must apply for a Job Change through INZ and receive approval before starting. Do not give notice to your current employer until the Job Change is approved. Working for a non-accredited employer is a visa breach with serious consequences for all future applications.
