Is your business ready for Accreditation Renewal?
Prepare now to continue employing overseas staff
Accreditation renewal support for New Zealand employers
If your business employs people on Accredited Employer Work Visas, your employer accreditation must be renewed before it expires. Because renewal doesn’t come up often, it’s easy for timelines to approach without much warning.
If you were first accredited under the AEWV system in 2022, or renewed your accreditation in 2024, your next renewal may be due this year.
Accreditation renewal is not automatic. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) now applies greater scrutiny to renewals, with audits, evidence requests and follow-up questions becoming increasingly common and around 1 in 6 businesses likely to get audited at any time.
Why employers are acting now
Leaving accreditation renewal too late can create real workforce and operational risk. Our focus is on helping employers avoid this through early preparation.
What’s at risk?
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Disruption to hiring or visa renewals.
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Lapsed status resulting in 12 month renewal vs 2 years.
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Being unable to use existing Job Check approvals.
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Increased pressure on HR, payroll and operations.
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Delays or declined renewals.
Accreditation renewal is no longer just an administrative task. It directly affects workforce continuity and retention.
Not yet accredited? Find out about becoming accredited
What INZ is assessing?
INZ expects employers to demonstrate that they are operating compliantly in practice, not just on paper.
This includes:
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Roles, pay rates and hours aligning with visa conditions.
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Accurate employment agreements and job descriptions.
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Compliant payroll and record keeping.
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Active monitoring of visa conditions.
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Systems to support and retain migrant workers.
Renewals increasingly involve detailed assessment and, in some cases, audit activity.
Employer accreditation renewal readiness checklist
If you are unsure how prepared your business is, this checklist is a good place to start.
Ask yourself:
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Do we know our accreditation expiry date.
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Have we reviewed all AEWV employees and their visa conditions.
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Do current pay rates, roles and hours match visa approvals.
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Are employment agreements and job descriptions up to date.
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Is payroll accurate and aligned with visa requirements.
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Do we have systems to track visa expiry dates and conditions.
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Are HR, payroll and operations aligned on compliance.
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Would we be comfortable if INZ audited us tomorrow.
If the answer to any of these is no or not sure, early action is recommended.
How we support accreditation renewal
Our expert team works with New Zealand employers on accreditation applications and renewals every day and know the process inside and out.
Get full support with:
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Reviewing your readiness well before accreditation expiry.
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Helping you with templates to ensure you are compliant.
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Identifying compliance risks early.
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Preparing renewal applications correctly the first time.
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Reducing delays, back-and-forth and business disruption.
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Presenting a clear, well-supported case to INZ.
With Licensed Immigration Advisers, Internationl Recruitment Specialists and workforce support under one roof, we help employers remain compliant while retaining the people they need.
Talk to us
If you are unsure when your accreditation expires or how prepared your business is, now is the time to check. Talk to our team about your employer accreditation renewal and workforce planning.
We are here to assist and always happy to chat.
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