Our Policy Manual

Renewal and Fast-Track Renewal Policy

Purpose

This policy sets out how to apply to renew a full, limited, or provisional immigration adviser licence.

Maintaining a current licence

It is the responsibility of advisers to make sure that their licence is valid. The Registrar has no discretion to accept renewal applications received after the expiry of an adviser’s current licence.

Under section 24(1) of the Act, a licence renewal application must be lodged with the Authority on or before the date on which the licence expires.

Under section 24(3) of the Act, if the Authority has lodged a licence renewal application, but has not assessed it before the date on which the licence would otherwise expire, the licence continues in force until the assessment of the application is determined.

As provided in the Act, if no application for the renewal of a licence is made on or before the date on which the licence would otherwise expire, the Registrar must record the expiry of the licence in the register as soon as practicable after that date.

When the Authority receives a late submission it will be returned immediately.

If any adviser fails to maintain a current licence, the Registrar will record the expiry of the licence on the register and the adviser will no longer be able to give immigration advice and would need to apply for a new licence

Application streams

There are two renewal application streams: standard and fast track.

Acceptance of applications

An adviser wishing to renew their licence must complete and submit the correct application form in hard copy, together with the required fee and supporting documentation.

A standard or fast-track renewal application must be submitted to the Authority in one of the following ways:

by mail delivered by New Zealand Post
by freight paid courier
over the counter at the office of the Authority, during normal business hours.

The Authority will return all renewal applications not received by one of the above means.

The Authority will not accept applications for renewal received more than two months before the expiry of the current licence. This means the information provided with the renewal is current at the time of assessment.

The Authority will acknowledge the application and provide a receipt for the fee.

Information required in the standard renewal process

The table below summarizes the information required for a standard renewal application.

Information required	Full licence holders	Limited licence holders	Provisional licence holders
Personal and contact details	√	√	√
Fitness for licensing	√	√	√
Examples of continuing professional development	√	√	√
Business activity	√	√	√
Copy of the adviser’s internal complaints procedure	√	√	√
Evidence of managing client funds	If applicable	If applicable	If applicable
Code of conduct	√	√	√
Other matters relating to competency	√	√	√
Client file	√	√	√
Fee and Levy	√	√	√
Photograph	√	√	√
Statutory declaration	√	√	√
Fee information	√	√	√
Application form for Approval of Supervision Arrangement	Not applicable	Not applicable	√
Proposed supervision arrangement	Not applicable	Not applicable	√

Personal and contact details (Part A)

The personal details section requires the applicant to give:

their full legal name, which will appear on the register of licensed immigration advisers (register)
their preferred name, if applicable, which will be indicated on the register
any other names they may be known by
their employment status; for example, if they are a director or volunteer.

The contact details section also requires the applicant to provide the following addresses.

business address, which is the primary location where the applicant conducts their business
physical address for the service of documents
postal address (if it is different from the business address).

All addresses must be in the same country. Under section 77(2)(a) of the Act, the purpose of the register is to enable members of the public to know how to contact a licensed immigration adviser and to facilitate the compliance, audit and other supporting and administrative functions of the Registrar. The register must show a business, service and postal address for where the adviser is located.

Fitness for licensing (Part B)

See the Fitness Policy for more information.

Competency standards and the Code of Conduct (Part C)

Part C is divided into sections that require the applicant to provide information regarding continuing professional development (CPD), business activity, code of conduct, matters relating to competency and client files.

Continuing professional development (section 1)

The applicant must list the CPD activities that they have undertaken in the 12-month period before applying for the licence. These activities must relate to the provision of immigration advice and can include:

reading materials relevant to the provision of immigration advice provided by the Registrar or another organisation
receiving formal instruction, education or training relevant to the provision of immigration advice
attending information sessions, seminars, courses or conferences relevant to the provision of immigration advice
participating in the structured supervision or mentoring of another immigration adviser
active participation in a relevant professional body, organisation or association
self-directed learning on topics relevant to the provision of immigration advice.

The applicant must state on the application how each CPD activity they have undertaken is relevant to their own development needs and to their profession and explain how the activity relates to one or more of the competency standards 2,3,4,5 and 6.

Business activity (section 2)

The applicant must indicate the type and numbers of applications or requests that they have had approved or declined by Immigration New Zealand since their current licence was granted.

Licensed Immigration Advisers Code of Conduct 2010 (section 3)

The applicant must provide a copy of their internal complaints procedure.

If the applicant manages client funds through taking money (fees and/or disbursements including INZ fees) in advance as per clause 4 of the code of conduct they must attach copies of:

bank statements for the applicant’s client account for the last three months
client tracking records relating to the bank statements provided. The records provided must be in consecutive date order with no gaps for the three months covered and include the date of the transaction, amount of the transaction, purpose of the transaction, type of transaction, client name and related invoice number.

This section also asks whether applicants provide clients with a copy of the code of conduct, how they explain the code of conduct to clients; and if they display the code of conduct in a prominent place in their business at all times.

Other matters relating to competency (section 4)

Section 4 requires the applicant to answer the following:

if the Authority requested the applicant to provide evidence of change in business practice at the renewal of their current licence, and if so, how have they addressed this
if there are any matters relevant to the assessment of the competency that the Registrar should be aware of.

Client files (section 5)

All applicants regardless of the type of licence they are renewing are required to submit one client file that tendered to INZ. The file must be one started during the current licensing period and should be finalised.

The client files may relate to any immigration matter, but they should reflect the applicant’s competence and their business processes and practices.

Submitted client files must be ones in which revenue was generated or fees charged.

The applicant must submit a client authorisation and declaration with each client file.

The Registrar would expect to see the following on a complete client file (this list is not exhaustive):

evidence of how client eligibility was assessed, such as a checklist, assessment form or consultation notes
the written agreement entered into with the client
all invoices provided to the client
a complete copy of the signed application form tendered to INZ
all correspondence with the client and file notes of any material conversations
all correspondence with INZ
evidence of the decision, including a copy of the visa label and the final decision letter from INZ if applicable
evidence of the safe return of the client’s original documents.

The client file summary asks the applicant to comment on:

the nature and complexity of the immigration matter and any aspects that they found challenging; and
whether they completed the entire file under supervision or if there were parts that they did not complete.

Performance indicators for client files

The Authority will consider the following performance indicators against the client files and CPD submitted when assessing the competency standards for renewing a licence.

The information below is a guide only. The Authority notes that, in addition to the specific matters below, if the evidence provided in a renewal application raises any concerns about whether an adviser is meeting any of the competency standards or indicates any issues of non-compliance with the code of conduct, the Authority may consider these issues when assessing the renewal application.

Performance indicators	Assessment expectations
Evidence of written agreements that fully describe the services that will be provided by the adviser.	Is the agreement clear, concise, and easily understood in plain English? Does it provide a full description of the services that will be provided? Are significant issues that may affect the application documented? Are the terms and conditions for payment of fees and disbursements clearly set out? Are clients advised that they are entitled to seek independent legal advice? Are clients advised of the adviser’s internal complaints procedures? Do clients acknowledge that they have been given the code of conduct and that this has been explained to them? Are changes to the terms of the agreement recorded and agreed in writing?
Evidence that clients are invoiced correctly	Are invoices provided each time a payment is payable? Do invoices contain a full description of the services they relate to? Is GST being charged correctly? Do invoices reconcile with the terms of the written agreement?
Evidence of how client funds taken in advance are managed.	Only where client funds are paid in advance for fees and/or disbursements, are these maintained in a separate bank account? Are funds held in advance in the client account withdrawn only when payable for fees and/or disbursements are payable? Are client transactions recorded and tracked, and are complete records available
Evidence of professional business practices relating to records and documents.	Is there a record that the client has been advised that their immigration application has been submitted to Immigration New Zealand? Are communications with clients timely? Is the file well documented? Does it tell a complete story?
Compliance with legislative and operating requirements.	Are applications being lodged appropriately? Are applications made in a timely manner?

Fee and levy

For applicants who are ordinarily resident in New Zealand the Licence Renewal Fee is NZ$909.78 and the Immigration Advisers Levy is NZ$1129.55.

For applicants who are not ordinarily resident in New Zealand the Licence Renewal Fee is NZ$791.11 and the Immigration Advisers Levy is NZ$982.22.

The renewal fee and levy are the same for both the standard and fast track applications

Payment methods include bank draft in New Zealand dollars, EFTPOS, New Zealand issued cheque and Visa or MasterCard.

Proof of identity

The applicant must attach a passport-sized and quality photograph, taken within the last six months.

The photograph must be verified as a true likeness of the applicant by a person who witnesses the statutory declaration.

Authorisation and statutory declaration

The authorisation and statutory declaration section requires the applicant to declare that the information that they have provided is correct. The declaration must be made in front of a person authorised to witness a statutory declaration.

The following persons may witness a statutory declaration made in New Zealand:

an enrolled barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand
a Justice of the Peace
a notary public
a Registrar or Deputy Registrar of the District Court, High Court, Court of Appeal or Supreme Court.

The following persons are authorised to witness a statutory declaration made outside of New Zealand:

in a Commonwealth country other than New Zealand— a Judge, Commissioner of Oaths, a notary public, a Justice of the Peace, or any person authorised by the law of that country to administer an oath there for the purpose of a judicial proceeding, a Commonwealth representative, or a solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand
in a country other than a Commonwealth— a Commonwealth representative, a Judge, a notary public, or a solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand.

Fee information

All applicants must provide information about the fees that they charge for the provision of immigration advice. This does not form part of the renewal assessment. The Authority gathers this information to publish the median and average fees on its website for public reference.

This information also helps the Registrar ascertain what fees are reasonable and fair for the purpose of section 8 of the code of conduct.

The Authority does not publish the fees charged by individual advisers.

Provisional licence supervision

If a provisional licence holder wishes to renew their provisional licence, they must also submit an application to have the existing supervision arrangement re-approved (Application Form for Approval of Supervision Arrangement).

If the applicant wishes to enter into a new supervision agreement with a different supervisor then they are required to submit a copy of that proposed supervision arrangement.

Fast-track renewal process

Once two standard renewals have been completed, an adviser may be eligible to lodge a fast-track renewal application form.

Eligible advisers may lodge a fast-track renewal application for two consecutive years unless the following has occurred:

since their most recent renewal, a complaint relating to the adviser has been made to the Authority that meets the criteria set out in section 44 of the Act, and the adviser has been informed of this
since their most recent renewal, the primary company or organisation the adviser works for has changed
the Authority has requested the adviser to provide evidence of a change in business practice at their next renewal
the adviser is applying to renew a provisional licence.

An adviser who has had a complaint made against them and has subsequently had a renewal approved through the standard renewal process may go through the fast-track stream even if the Tribunal has not made a decision on the complaint before the adviser’s next renewal.

After every two consecutive fast-track renewal applications, advisers are required to lodge one standard renewal application in the following year.

The fast-track application requires the applicant to provide:

their personal and contact details
their fitness for licensing
a payment method to pay the licence application fee
a verified passport-sized photograph
a statutory declaration; and
the fee information.

The fee and levy are the same for a fast-track application as they are for a standard renewal application.

By signing the statutory declaration the applicant is declaring that they meet the standards set out in the competency standards, they have completed at least 20 hours of continuing professional development since the granting of their current licence, and that all information provided in the application form is complete, correct and up to date.

Assessment of fast-track renewal applications

If the evidence provided in a fast-track renewal application raises any concerns about whether an adviser is meeting any of the competency standards, or indicates issues of non-compliance with the code of conduct, the Registrar may investigate those issues in full.

Licensed immigration advisers eligible for fast-track should always be prepared to lodge a standard renewal form. If a complaint is made shortly before an adviser’s renewal is due, the adviser will be required to lodge a standard renewal form. Advisers must be prepared to provide all the evidence required for a standard renewal.

Grant of licence for all renewal applications

Once the Registrar has made a decision, the Authority will send a conditional approval letter to the applicant’s service address given on the application. The approval letter includes payment options for the immigration adviser levy. There are different requirements for the payment of the immigration adviser levy depending if the applicant is onshore or offshore:

the Authority will give an onshore applicant 20 working days from the sending date of the approval letter or until the expiry date of their current licence; whatever one is later, to pay the immigration adviser levy; or
the Authority will give an offshore applicant 30 working days from the sending date of the approval letter or until the expiry date of their current licence; whatever one is later, to pay the immigration adviser levy.

Once the levy is paid, the Authority will send a licence certificate, a wallet card and information about being a New Zealand licensed immigration adviser to the service address given on the application. The register of immigration advisers will be updated with the adviser’s details.

Immigration Advisers Authority