The levels of immigration by successive governments has been damaging for New Zealand’s economy and New Zealand’s long-term interests. We will conduct a review of New Zealand’s capacity to handle future migration with a view to setting a significantly lower overall number of net migrations.

Based on the current economic situation post-COVID, we are going to delay further immigration until it is economically feasible to do so.

Once New Zealand is ‘back on its feet’, Advance NZ will implement a fair system of immigration so that those who can contribute, have the chance to. 

We recognise that it is a competitive process and we have a wonderful country that many wish to live in. However, we cannot house the entire globe in our country. We must regulate the migration flows to New Zealand to ensure that the people coming here share our values and principles, as well as being contributing members of our society.  

Our policy therefore takes a realistic approach to immigration to ensure that those willing to help us are let in. We must grow sustainably.

Advance NZ proposes an improvement to the Residence Visa Application system.  This will allow more opportunity for people to come into our country while eliminating the risk of income support dependence.  We want to reaffirm that those willing to work hard should have the right to come here and those that have a good infrastructure in place can do so without hassle.

We will also take into consideration the family members of skilled immigrants that have already come over.  Our policy will include an avenue allowing the last member of a family in New Zealand to come over on a long term family visitor. This will help to connect families together and those that have worked hard deserve the chance for unity in our great country of Aotearoa.

With New Zealand having been dealt significant economic damage because of decisions made by the current Government, we are no longer in a position to offer assistance in the way we have in yesteryear. For this reason, Advance NZ will implement an immediate moratorium on any new refugees coming to New Zealand for a period of 5 years. We must take care of our own people first and fix our infrastructure.  We must help ourselves before we can help others.

Policy in brief

• Implement a pause on immigration, with a full review of appropriate metrics before any restoration of immigration is implemented.
• Implement a 5-year moratorium on any new refugees coming to New Zealand which are directed by UN initiatives. Individual cases will still be looked at on their own merit.
• Conduct an inquiry into the ideal sustainable population level for New Zealand
• Immediately review the UN Global Compact for Migration and whether it aligns with our principles and values.
• For existing immigrants, a new Visa classification of ‘Long-Term Family Visa’ will be created to reunite parents with their children.
• Lower the Annual Income requirements for attaining a Residence Visa to parents with condition that will not get social benefit for fifteen years. 
• Rebalance the Residence Visa Income requirements to give more opportunity, while lessening the risk to our economy.

Advance NZ’s plan:

Migration

• Conduct an inquiry into the ideal sustainable population level that New Zealand can handle.  This would include a review of the socioeconomic and demographic impact of the past 20 years of immigration.  Ideally, that outcome would be a set percentage per year.
• An immediate review of the UN Global Compact for Migration to determine whether it aligns with our values and principles for immigration.  It must align with us for us to have signed it rather than us having to adjust to it, otherwise, we will withdraw from it.
• If migrants leave before a period of 2 years, any benefits paid to them whilst living here must be repaid.
• Require that where a person has been sponsored to come to New Zealand and that person has breached their visa conditions by not returning to their home country within the required period of time, the person’s sponsor shall be liable to a penalty of up to $5,000 per month until the unlawful person is located and deported from New Zealand.

Family Reunification

• We will implement a Long Term Family Visa system where the last immediate family member or parents of a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident can travel to New Zealand and reunite with their family on-long term basis.
• The Long Term Family Visa will be similar to a visitor visa but will be issued for up to 5 years. This will enable family reunification.
• Any family member that has come through this system and has been granted a Long Term Family Visa will not be eligible for any state income support; they must instead be financially self-sufficient or financially supported by their family in New Zealand.

Parent Category changes:

• The income threshold settings for Residence Visa Applications in the Parent Category is currently too high.  We will reduce the threshold down to where it was originally — $65,000 per annum for single income or $90,000 per annum joint income per couple — with a condition that the parents are not eligible for income support for 15 years.

Refugees

• We will implement a 5-year moratorium on any new refugees coming to New Zealand which are directed by UN initiatives. Individual cases will still be assessed on their own merit.
• We will conduct a review of refugee resettlement practices to ensure greater integration into society for all refugees and to ensure silo communities (where refugees have been segregated from mainstream society) are not easily formed.

Religious freedom

• We will ensure greater religious freedom is recognised so that those wishing to practice their religion are free to do so. 
• We will review and remove restrictions that trample on religious freedom. 
• Where practical solutions can be found to enable the expression of a person’s religion, we will enable that to happen. For example, we will allow Sikh (turban wearing people) to ride motorbikes on the motorway without a helmet as this is a common right in many other countries.