Working in New Zealand from Malaysia: the AEWV

What the AEWV is

When a New Zealand employer hires someone from overseas, it normally does so through the Accredited Employer Work Visa. This guide explains its three checks and what Malaysian applicants should get ready.

The AEWV is New Zealand's main temporary work visa for overseas workers. You can only apply once an accredited employer has offered you a job and sent you a link to the online application. The job must give you at least 30 hours a week and pay at least the market rate, and never less than a legal minimum such as the New Zealand minimum wage.

Not covered: self-employment, work as crew on foreign fishing vessels, and planting, maintaining, harvesting or packing crops in horticulture or viticulture.

The three checks

1. The employer is accredited by Immigration New Zealand.
2. The job passes a job check: the employer shows that the pay and conditions meet the rules and, where required, that the job was advertised to New Zealanders first. An approved job check lasts 6 months.
3. You receive a unique link, the "job token", from the employer, then apply for the visa and show you meet the skills, English, health and character requirements.

Who qualifies: skills and experience

• Job offer: from an accredited employer with an approved job check.
• Skills: either 2 years or more of relevant work experience, or a qualification at level 4 or above on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF). A bachelor's degree or higher in any subject also counts.
• Overseas qualifications below bachelor's level, such as a Malaysian trade certificate, count only after NZQA completes an International Qualification Assessment (IQA).
• No skills test for, among others, Green List roles, roles that need occupational registration (electrical and plumbing work are examples), and roles paying NZD 67.12 an hour or more (as of October 2026, official page).

See what is open: sponsored jobs in New Zealand.

English scores

Whether you must prove your English depends on the skill level of the job: yes for ANZSCO (or NOL) skill level 3, 4 or 5, no for skill level 1 or 2. Minimum results (as of October 2026, official page):

Take the test in person, and make sure the result is no more than 2 years old when you apply.

Health and police certificates

• Chest X-ray for TB: needed if you will stay longer than 6 months and you are a citizen of, or have recently spent time in, a country without a low rate of tuberculosis. Medical and X-ray results must be less than 3 months old when INZ receives them.
• Police certificates: needed from age 17 if you will spend 24 months or more in New Zealand in total. Provide one from every country of citizenship and every country you have lived in for more than 5 years since turning 17, each less than 6 months old. From Malaysia, ask the PDRM for a Certificate of Good Conduct.

Step by step

1. Apply to an accredited employer.
2. Interview and receive an offer.
3. The employer gets its approvals: accreditation, and an approved job check for your role.
4. You receive the job token, the link you apply through.
5. Gather your documents: passport, evidence of qualifications or experience, an English result if the role needs one, police certificates, medical results and certified translations where needed.
6. Apply online and pay the fee.
7. Get the decision, then travel and start your new job.

Time, fees and how long the visa lasts

• Processing: 80% of applications are decided within 5.5 weeks (as of October 2026, official page). Add the time your employer needs for accreditation and the job check, and the time you need to collect documents.
• Fee: from NZD 1,540 (as of October 2026, official page), depending on your country; the official page works out the exact amount.
• How long you can stay: up to 5 years in total for most roles, or 3 years for roles at ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5 unless an exception applies, such as pay of NZD 52.50 an hour or more or a Green List role (AEWV time limits). Once you reach the limit, you must spend 12 months outside New Zealand before another AEWV can be granted.
• Conditions: work only in the approved job for the approved employer, with no second job, and study for no more than 3 months in any 12 months.
• Changing jobs: a new employer, role or location needs a variation of conditions or a Job Change, which requires a new accredited employer and job check. A Job Change does not extend the visa (changing visa conditions).

Partner and children

Your AEWV does not include your family. Your partner and children apply for their own visas, and which ones they can get depends on your pay and job. The thresholds (as of October 2026, official page):

• NZD 52.50 an hour or more: you can support a work visa for your partner and visas for your dependent children.
• NZD 28.00 an hour or more in a role at ANZSCO skill level 1 to 3: you can support a Partner of a Worker Work Visa.
• Under NZD 28.00 an hour: your partner can only get a visitor visa.
• Children: to support a child visitor visa or a dependent child student visa, you need an annual income of at least NZD 58,240; if both partners hold an AEWV, their incomes can be added together.

The official page lists more detail and exceptions, Green List roles among them. Check it against your own situation.

Staying for good: residence routes

The AEWV is temporary, but some holders go on to qualify for residence (as of October 2026, official page).

• Green List: a Tier 1 role leads to the Straight to Residence Visa; a Tier 2 role leads to the Work to Residence Visa after 24 months of full-time work in that role in New Zealand (Green List pathway).
• Skilled Migrant Category (SMC): a resident visa for applicants aged 55 or under, with three pathways: points-based, skilled work experience, and trades and technicians (SMC Resident Visa).

Residence rules are reviewed from time to time, so check the current version on the official pages before you plan around them.

Your checklist in Malaysia

This is how the general Immigration New Zealand requirements play out when you apply from Malaysia.

• Passport. It must stay valid for at least 3 months beyond the date you plan to leave New Zealand.
• Police clearance. If you are 17 or older and your total time in New Zealand will be 24 months or more, INZ wants a certificate from each country you are a citizen of (Malaysia for most readers, through a PDRM Certificate of Good Conduct) and from each country you have lived in for more than 5 years since you turned 17. Each must be less than 6 months old on the day you apply, and INZ needs the certificate itself, not a receipt. The INZ police certificate tool shows the steps for Malaysia.
• Proof of experience. A CV on its own is not enough. Send papers from your employers, such as employment certificates, payslips, tax records or reference letters showing your role, your dates and a contact person.
• Qualifications below a bachelor's degree. If they were earned outside New Zealand, NZQA has to complete an International Qualification Assessment (IQA) before they count.
• Medicals. When a medical exam or chest X-ray is needed, the result must be less than 3 months old when it reaches INZ.
• Certified translations. Each police and medical certificate not written in English needs one, even a certificate that shows no convictions. INZ will not accept a translation made by you, a relative or your immigration adviser (INZ translation rules).

A simple order of work: write your CV in English, ask every employer for a letter and payslips, and time your PDRM application so the certificate is still fresh when you lodge. The rest is on the official AEWV page.

Scams and slip-ups to avoid

• No fee for a job. In New Zealand an employer or agent cannot charge you for a job, or pass its recruitment costs on to you, whether directly or through someone else.
• Paying for an offer sinks the visa. INZ declines the AEWV if it believes you or your agent offered or promised the employer money for the job offer.
• One government payment. The application fee is the only charge INZ collects, and INZ never asks for visa fees by bank deposit.
• Who can advise you. Immigration advice must come from someone licensed by the Immigration Advisers Authority or from an exempt person (INZ on immigration advice). Applying without an adviser is also allowed.
• Common slip-ups: sending a CV instead of independent proof of experience; police certificates older than the 6-month limit; documents left untranslated; and accepting a role where the employer is not accredited or the job check is not approved.

Official warning: INZ guidance on immigration scams.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get an AEWV without a job offer?

No. You first need an offer from an accredited employer with an approved job check. The employer then sends you the job token, which is the link you apply through.

How much experience does the AEWV need?

Usually 2 years or more of relevant experience, or an NZQCF qualification at level 4 or above. Some roles are exempt, including Green List roles and very well-paid roles.

Do I need IELTS or PTE for the AEWV?

Only if the role is at ANZSCO skill level 3, 4 or 5. The minimum is IELTS 4.0 overall or PTE Academic 29, or the equivalent on another accepted test (as of October 2026), and the result must be no older than 2 years.

Which police certificate does New Zealand want from Malaysia?

Usually the PDRM Certificate of Good Conduct. INZ asks for it if you are 17 or older and will spend 24 months or more in New Zealand in total, and it must be less than 6 months old when you apply. The INZ police certificate tool shows what is accepted from each country.

How long does an AEWV take?

As of October 2026, INZ decides 80% of applications within 5.5 weeks. The AEWV page has the latest figure.

How long can I stay on an AEWV?

Up to 5 years in total for most roles, or 3 years for most roles at ANZSCO skill level 4 or 5. After reaching the limit you must spend 12 months outside New Zealand before getting another AEWV.

Can my partner work in New Zealand?

It depends on your job and pay. For example, earning NZD 52.50 an hour or more, or NZD 28.00 an hour or more in a role at ANZSCO skill level 1 to 3, may let your partner get a Partner of a Worker Work Visa.

Can an employer or agent charge me for the job?

No. New Zealand does not allow employers or agents to charge job fees or to pass recruitment costs on to you, and INZ declines the visa if the job offer was paid for.