NZ Work Visas and Proving Your Work Experience

One of the quietest reasons a work visa application stalls is work experience — not whether you have it, but whether you can prove it to Immigration New Zealand's standard. On the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV), which replaced the old Essential Skills Work Visa, experience is often what makes or breaks an otherwise strong application. Here's what's required and how to evidence it properly.

What the rules actually ask for

To qualify for the AEWV, an applicant generally needs to meet a threshold of relevant work experience or hold a suitable qualification. The work experience requirement was reduced from three years to two years in 2025 — so for many roles, two years of relevant experience is now the benchmark, unless the applicant holds a qualification (broadly Level 4 or above) that meets the requirement instead.

The word doing the heavy lifting there is relevant. It isn't enough to have worked for two years; the experience needs to genuinely relate to the role you're being offered and its occupation classification.

Why "relevant" trips people up

Immigration officers assess whether your background matches the specific role, not just your general career. Someone with a decade in a related field can still be questioned if their documented duties don't clearly line up with the job on offer. Job titles vary between countries and companies, so a title alone rarely proves anything — what matters is the substance of what you actually did, described in a way that maps to New Zealand's occupation framework.

Evidence that stands up

Strong applications don't just claim experience — they document it. That typically means employment references on company letterhead confirming your role, dates, and duties; contracts or payslips showing continuity; and, where relevant, evidence of the specific tasks or responsibilities that match the role. Gaps, informal work, self-employment, and roles at companies that no longer exist all need careful handling, because thin or inconsistent evidence invites questions — and questions cause delays.

The employer's side

For employers, this connects directly to the job check. The role you advertise and describe needs to be consistent with the experience your candidate can actually evidence. A mismatch between the job check, the employment agreement, and the worker's documented history is a common cause of delay. Getting these aligned before lodging saves everyone time.

Why it's worth getting right early

A work experience issue is much cheaper to fix before you apply than after a request for further information — or a decline. Reconstructing years-old employment records under time pressure, from another country, is stressful and sometimes impossible. Building the evidence file properly at the start is the difference between a smooth application and a stalled one.

Every case is different

Experience thresholds, qualification equivalents, and occupation classifications all change, and how your particular history will be assessed depends on the detail. If there's any doubt about whether your experience will satisfy Immigration New Zealand — or how to evidence it — that's worth resolving before you lodge, not after.