Many of those annoying people hustling passers-by in city streets for charity donations are paid professionals from overseas - and more could be on the way.

Labour want to increase incentives for immigrants to accept jobs or establish businesses in regional New Zealand to take the pressure off Auckland.

Adoption is being used by migrants as a way to "sneak" their relatives into the country, immigration advisers say.

New Zealand's annual migration rose to its highest in more than a decade, gaining a net 36,400 migrants in the year through May.

The nannies who care for internet mogul Kim Dotcom's five children have been allowed to remain in New Zealand.

Much of the talk about potential asylum seekers misses the fact that our refugee quota has not increased once in its 27 years of existence, Murdoch Stephens.

Donghua Liu is rapidly starting to rival Kim Dotcom in the wrecking ball stakes, so many heads are in danger from his dealings with politicians, writes Claire Trevett.

A man who posed as a licensed immigration adviser and took money from vulnerable would-be migrants is appealing against his sentence.

A wealthy Auckland businessman, whose links to the National Party led to a minister's resignation, also made a secret $15,000 donation to Labour.

A Dutch tourist slipped away from immigration custody at Christchurch Airport today, prompting a police search.

A video on YouTube is teaching would-be migrants how to get into New Zealand to work while holding a visitor visa.

A ruthless system by which desperate migrants trying to reach Italy by boat across the Mediterranean are charged for "extras", such as lifejackets, food and water.

Labour is looking "very closely" at changing the rules for foreign investors who can get residency in New Zealand by paying $10 million.

A New Zealand Fijian family are praising the Government for granting their cancer-affected mother residency which will allow her to die with dignity and among loved ones.

The Asian population could hit 800,000 in 10 years and more than two-thirds will be living in Auckland, a Chinese conference this weekend will be told.

David Cunliffe has tried just about everything to put a dent in the Government's poll ratings without success, writes Brian Rudman. He's now dipping into Winston Peters' murky bag of trick

Labour leader David Cunliffe wants to cut the level of immigration but won't say by how much.

Labour leader David Cunliffe has defended helping a Chicago-based friend buy a house in Omaha, despite saying overseas investors were hurting the housing market.

Rogue dairy farmers exploiting migrant workers have no place in the industry, a senior farming leader says.

John Key said attempts by people smugglers to bring 50 asylum seekers by boat to NZ was not unexpected, and confirmed the Government’s intelligence reporting.

Kiwis leaving for Australia fell to a record low boosting net migration to levels the Reserve Bank says will help drive up house prices and stoke inflation.

Learning English was just a dream for Ye Tun Oo, let alone being able to start a degree in an English-speaking country.

Labour and Greens have pulled their support for a law change which cracks down on migrant exploitation.

Migration pressures which Labour says are contributing to a housing crisis were worse under Helen Clark's Government.

This week's Budget was notable for its carefully telegraphed surpluses and the relatively moderate election sweeteners included in its slightly looser fiscal outlook, writes Bernard Hickey.

With today's Budget expected to herald a return to surpluses - skinny next year but plumper in the following years - it is time to start thinking about what to do with them, writes Brian Fallow.