2 September 2002

Passmark Change

The General Skills Category passmark will increase from 28 to 29 points next Monday, 9 September 2002, Immigration Minister Lianne Dalziel announced today.

The passmark sets the number of points required to gain New Zealand residence under the General Skills Category of the New Zealand Immigration Programme.

"Today's announcement is the first since I announced in June that the passmark would be reviewed monthly and that future passmark adjustments would be announced with a five-day notice period," Lianne Dalziel said.

"The change is being made in order to manage the 2002-2003 New Zealand Immigration Programme which has been set at 45,000 approvals (with a tolerance of +/- 5000)."

The 2002-03 NZ Immigration Programme is made up of the following priorities: · Skilled/Business 60% (27,000 places +/- 3000 places) · Family Sponsored 30% (13,500 +/- 1500 places) · International/Humanitarian 10% (4,500 +/- 500 places)

"Throughout the 2001/2002 year, the New Zealand Immigration Service was swamped with large numbers of residence applications in the General Skills Category which is a strong indicator of New Zealand's international appeal as a migrant destination.

"This meant that a significant number of applications were carried forward into this financial year, and the inflow of new applications since 1 July 2002 has continued to be ahead of forecast.

"This government is committed to selecting skilled and employable migrants who are going to settle well in New Zealand. Already half of the skilled migrants who come to New Zealand have a relevant job offer when they arrive. Increasing the passmark will make this even more likely," Lianne Dalziel said.

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