

Ask HN: Migrating to New Zealand for job, how easy it is? - wonderer_ba

Hey guys. 
I was wondering is anyone here have some experience about migrating to New Zealand and getting work visa as developer without college education. 
I live in one retarded country and planing to move somewhere.<p>I am 32 years old and have full time work as system&#x2F;network administrator (linux machines) and i do freelance developer work (mostly ruby and php) for more than 8 years. 
Like i said no college education and i am wondering what are my chances? Anyone with experience and similar preferences?
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Area12
Hi, I migrated from the USA to NZ in the early 90s.

1) Lack of certification could hurt more than lack of university ("college" =
high school in NZ). Got Cisco or Redhat certs, or something similar? Also,
knowing some Microsoft would not hurt. Many companies mix technologies, and
most sysadmins are generalists, I think. That doesn't mean specialists can't
make money, but specialists usually have certs.

2) Go to reddit.com/r/newzealand and read the FAQs on the right side of the
screen. Don't post anything until you read the FAQs ... it is a NZ custom to
mislead people who don't do the basic research.

3) What city are you thinking about? There are sub-reddits for the bigger
cities. They have FAQs too and the posters can help you out. Did I mention you
should read the FAQs? Those sub-reddits have FAQs too.

4) The other posters have the right idea, I think. Even the Aussie guy. Cost
of living in New Zealand is NOT cheap. Living in the USA is mostly cheaper. If
making money is a problem ... think carefully here.

5) If you are the paranoid type, remember that NZ is a member of Five Eyes ...
we have fairly close spying relations with the USA. Will you be more
comfortable here? One plus: religion is less dominant here.

6) Every country is retarded in its own special way. Before you decide to move
to a country, research its news sites for a few weeks. That doesn't give you
an unbiased view, but go into this decision with a cool head.

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mogest
Hi. I'm a dev manager for Powershop, which is a New Zealand company based in
Wellington, and a good chunk of my job is recruiting devs.

Wellington is suffering a bit of a drought of good, available developers at
the moment. We've had so many tech companies start up here in recent years,
and the working conditions in most companies are so good, that people are
generally content where they are. Given that, we all advertise
internationally. I'd say about half of our applicants that pass initial
screening are international now.

Qualifications are mostly meaningless – don't worry about that, especially if
you spent the time you would have been at college doing practical work.

It's a risk hiring someone from overseas, so we look for you to prove three
things: 1) that you're experienced in your area 2) that you are highly skilled
in the things you claim to be 3) that you are likely to stick around for at
least a couple of years

Links to open source software you've written is great at demonstrating the
first two. People you know here, prior experience with the country, a family
enthusiastic to move will all go towards demonstrating number 3. Whatever the
case, you need to be able to quell your interviewers' fears by having very
solid answers to those questions.

Given our developer shortage, getting a work visa is a straightforward process
once you have a job offer.

Hope that helps. I'm @mogest on twitter if you have any other questions.

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AOsborn
I am not familiar with Visa application process, only from the hiring
perspective. I am sure most of my advice is generic and will apply in many
locations.

\- Any time we open a position there are a large number of applicants who have
recently emigrated, often without a Visa and hence are looking for sponsorship
(this is possible). Standing out of the crowd is important.

\- Ensure your english is up to scratch - spoke and written. (Triple check CVs
for grammar etc).

\- Introductions go a long way, so technology networking meetings are your
friend. Meetup.com is helpful, at least in Auckland.

\- Direct sponsorship by an employer is possible. However this would be
difficult for a standard developer role - if you can sell yourself as a niche
expert this would be beneficial.

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gnat
The NZ govt site [https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/move-to-nz/new-zealand-
vis...](https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/move-to-nz/new-zealand-visa/work-
visa) is a good start for your research. My sense is that degrees count
untowardly for permanent residency/migration. However, I don't think they're
so important for temporary work (NZ has "skilled occupation shortages" and
most types of sw development is on it). I know that
[http://catalyst.net.nz](http://catalyst.net.nz) are a massive open source
employer in NZ—check them out. Good luck!

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wonderer_ba
Thank you all of answers. Area12 thanks for advices. mogest i've followed you
on twitter. I definitely have more questions.

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juliancox
Being a kiwi I can't really answer your question, but coincidentally there was
a report on national radio here this morning about how people were traveling
here on student visas to study, staying on with a job after graduation and
getting residency that way. That maybe something worth looking and a good
opportuninity to address the lack of college education at the same time. You'd
need some reasonable savings to afford the education and living costs for up
to 3 years.

~~~
Sir_Substance
If NZ educations costs are the same as Aus education costs, I'd estimate
"reasonable savings" at about $100,000.

20k per year education, because it won't be subsidised by the government, 7.5k
per year as minimal living costs, and that's _really_ minimal.

