AEWV Job-Hunting Checklist: Job Check, Job Change & Scams (2026)

The AEWV job hunt in one sentence: the employer needs accreditation, the role needs an approved job check, you need 2 years of relevant experience (or a level 4+ qualification) plus English for skill level 3–5 jobs — and the whole chain is free for you, so anyone asking you for money is the scam, not the shortcut.

In the job-hunting series, this guide goes further into the AEWV side of the process. The channels (Seek, Trade Me, LinkedIn, recruiters) and the 5-minute accredited-employer verification live in the hub guide; read that first if you haven’t, because this guide starts where it stops.

The rules in force right now (post–March 2025)

The AEWV was reformed on 10 March 2025. What the official pages say today:

Element	Current setting
Pay floor	The general median-wage requirement is removed. Pay must meet the market rate for the role and at least the NZ minimum wage
Experience	2 years of relevant experience (was 3), or an NZQCF level 4+ qualification; a Bachelor’s degree or higher can be in any field
English	Required for ANZSCO/NOL skill level 3–5 jobs (test result under 2 years old); not required for levels 1–2
Visa length	Matches the maximum continuous stay: up to 5 years for skill level 1–3 jobs, 3 years for level 4–5
Maximum continuous stay	Hit the cap and you must spend time (normally 12 months) outside NZ before another AEWV
Labour-market test	Skill 1–3 jobs advertised ≥14 days; skill 4–5 jobs ≥21 days plus a good-faith declaration of engaging Work and Income — both are the employer’s burden, not yours

Two caveats on the “median wage is gone” headline. First, several linked settings still track the median wage: partner and dependent-child income thresholds, Green List pay requirements, some maximum-stay rules; the current numbers are in the salary threshold guide. Second, “market rate” is not a loophole: INZ assesses whether the pay matches what New Zealanders doing the same job get, so a suspiciously cheap offer is a decline risk, not a bargain.

Job Check, from the candidate’s side

The hub guide covered the one-paragraph version. Here’s what actually happens on the employer’s side, because it explains the timing you experience:

1. Accreditation: the company is approved to hire migrants (this is the badge you verify on INZ’s list).
2. Advertising: unless exempt, the employer advertises the role to prove no suitable New Zealander is available: at least 14 days for skill level 1–3 jobs, 21 days for level 4–5, plus a good-faith declaration of engaging Work and Income for the lower-skilled roles. If the job was advertised, the job check application must be lodged within 90 days of the ad closing.
3. Job check application: INZ approves the specific role: occupation, pay, location, minimum requirements. One application can cover multiple identical positions; a different location, title or terms needs a separate check. The employer pays a fee for each one, and by rule, all recruitment costs belong to the employer and cannot be passed on to you.
4. Approval → job token: the employer gets a job token (a 10-character job check number starting with JC) and sends you a unique application link through Immigration Online. You lodge the AEWV from that link.

Validity: 6 months, or until the employer’s accreditation lapses, whichever comes first. You must apply while the job check is valid.

What this means for you in practice:

• The question that separates real offers from talk: “Has the job check for this role already been approved, and when?” An employer with an approved check can move in weeks; one starting from zero (advertise → job check → your visa) is a months-long commitment. Both are legitimate, but you should know which one you’re waiting on.
• A long-running ad cuts both ways. It can mean the job check was approved months ago and is about to expire, or that no check exists at all. Ask.
• Match matters. You must meet the experience and qualification requirements the employer stated in the job check, not just the ones in the ad. If the check says 3 years and you have 2, the visa fails even though the AEWV minimum is 2.
• Your application bundle: signed job offer, employment agreement and job description, passport, photo, experience/qualification evidence, registration if the job needs it, English evidence for skill 3–5, police certificates and medicals where required; documents not in English need translations.

Changing employer or role: the Job Change

The AEWV is tied to a specific employer, occupation and location. Change any of the three and you need a Job Change (a variation of conditions), applied for online by you, not the employer:

• the new employer must be accredited and hold a valid job check for the new role, and you quote its job token number in the application;
• you upload the new job offer or employment agreement;
• the change only starts when INZ approves it and issues your updated eVisa. Starting the new job before approval means working outside your visa conditions, a breach that follows you into future applications;
• the visa’s expiry date does not move. A Job Change re-points your existing visa; it doesn’t extend it;
• you must meet any qualification or experience requirements the new employer listed in its job advertisement.

Two edge cases INZ spells out: if your employer sells the business or restructures and your employment transfers to a new legal owner, that also needs a Job Change (a mere reporting-line change does not). And if you’re made redundant, fired, or the company goes into liquidation, contact INZ before doing anything else, they’ll tell you whether it’s a Job Change, a variation or a new visa.

The practical risk while your visa is still valid: the gap between jobs is dead time on a fixed clock. Your maximum continuous stay keeps counting, the expiry date doesn’t budge, and every week between roles is a week you’re not banking toward the work-experience requirements of a Work to Residence or SMC application. Negotiate the start date around the Job Change approval, not the other way round.

If your employer loses accreditation

Accreditation can be suspended or revoked, and employers who breach immigration or employment law land on the stand-down list. The official position:

• Already working there? You can continue until your current visa expires; INZ states this explicitly, and it holds even on revocation. The employer simply cannot hire new migrants or support fresh applications.
• Want to leave? Find an accredited employer with a valid job check and apply for a Job Change before you start.
• Not yet in New Zealand? This is the dangerous case: if accreditation is pulled before you travel, INZ contacts affected migrants because they may not be able to travel on that visa. If your offer is in limbo, do not book non-refundable anything.
• Job-hunting? The stand-down list is public. A stood-down employer cannot support visa applications for a set period no matter what it promises. Check it before you invest, as covered in the hub guide.

The avoid list

1. Paying for a job offer — always a no. INZ will decline an AEWV where it considers you or your agent offered or promised money to the employer in exchange for the offer, and it publishes a scam warning because the pattern is so common. The scripts to recognise: a “deposit to lock the position”, an “employer sponsorship fee” split with an agent, “guaranteed visa” packages, paying for the job check or accreditation “on the employer’s behalf”. The tell underneath all of them: in New Zealand, the employer is legally responsible for all recruitment costs (advertising, agency fees, accreditation and job check fees) and cannot pass them to you. Money flowing from candidate to anyone means the deal is structured backwards.
2. Non-compliant intermediaries. A legitimate recruiter is paid by the employer and never charges you for placement; a licensed immigration adviser charges for visa advice, not for jobs. Anyone who blurs the two (selling a job and bundling the visa paperwork) is the exact profile INZ’s warning describes.
3. Trial-period traps. An AEWV employment agreement cannot include a trial period, unlawful deductions, or bonding clauses that make you repay money if you leave early; an application built on such an agreement can be declined. So a 90-day trial in your AEWV offer isn’t just an employment-law problem; it’s a visa problem. The wider probation and workplace-culture traps are covered in the workplace-culture guide.

Feed the job into a residence pathway

The AEWV is a bridge, not a destination; the 3/5-year cap sees to that. Before you sign, check where the role leads:

• Green List Tier 1 occupation? You may qualify for Straight to Residence, with no waiting period. See the Tier 1 vs Tier 2 comparison.
• Green List Tier 2? Two years of NZ work in the role, then Work to Residence, which is why the Job Change discipline above matters: those 24 months have specific rules.
• Neither? The SMC 6-point system counts your registration, qualification or income plus NZ skilled work experience; an AEWV job is how you bank that experience.

Two offers that look identical can be years apart on residence. Run yours through the Green List checker and the Pathway Finder before you negotiate, not after.

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Reading an offer right now? Work the interactive checklist at the top of this page top to bottom, and keep the hub guide open for the channel and employer-verification tactics.