Migrant group claiming a victory in rules dispute

A migrants' association is claiming an interim victory against the Government's changes to immigration rules before its case has gone to court.

The Association for Migration and Investment filed High Court proceedings on Christmas Eve against the retrospective part of last month's legislative changes.

The changes meant applicants for long-term business visas who would have gained entry to New Zealand would now have to sit a tougher English language test.

But also on Christmas Eve the Immigration Service announced it would defer decisions on relevant applications until March 31, or until the substantive proceedings had been determined by the High Court.

The Immigration Minister, Lianne Dalziel, said this simply put applicants into a "holding pattern" until the matters before the court were determined.

The association, however, said it was delighted at the "conciliatory approach" of the Immigration Service since the proceedings were lodged.

"It will make this a Christmas of renewed hope for many would-be New Zealanders," said chairman Bill Milnes. "We look forward to early next year when the High Court will have a chance to rule against all retrospective actions of the new rules."

The Immigration Service has also agreed, pending the outcome of the court case, to freeze decisions on job search visas for general skills applicants lodged by November 19 which would have succeeded but for the rule changes.

Thousands of migrants who applied for the job search visas under the old rules could now be denied them unless they were seeking work in one of the restricted fields covered by the Occupational Shortages List, said Mr Milnes. But that list was subject to constant change and it was impossible to foretell whether a skill on the list when the application was filed would still be on the list when the application was decided.

A spokesman for Immigration Minister Lianne Dalziel said people who had submitted applications which had not been finalised and who were likely to be declined as a result of the changes would have the decisions "held in abeyance" until the completion of the court case.

She also said the Government would vigorously defend the association's legal challenge.

"It is important to remember that these legal proceedings are not a challenge to the substantive changes made by Government to residence and temporary entry immigration policies.

"Rather, they are a challenge to the application of those changes to certain narrowly defined classes of persons who had other immigration applications outstanding as at November 19, 2002."

Herald feature: Immigration