Will New Zealand amnesty these “black households”? Minister of Immigration responds

Reprinted from the New Zealand Chinese Pioneer Public Account (ID: Chinese_Herald)

The New Zealand Immigration and Protection Court recently released an annual report showing that the number of immigration appeals has surged in the past year, with an average monthly increase in the average monthly rate.131 casesalmost twice that of 2022/23.

Some immigration lawyers hope the government will grant amnesty to resolve the issue of residence for these people.

The court pointed out that the sudden increase in cases was mainly due to the adjustment of immigration policy in the previous government.

After the epidemic, temporary visa standards were relaxed, and a large number of tourists and short-term workers entered the country. As soon as some people entered New Zealand, they filed applications for residence, humanitarian or refugee, causing a wave of appeals.

Although the number of cases handled by courts increased by 22% last year, the backlog still rose by 42% at the end of the year.

The house was leaking and the rain was raining all night long. The new members of the court have not yet been in place. The court admitted that it was currently insufficient and it was difficult to complete the routine appeal within four to six months, and the overall trial speed was severely slowed down.

Source of this article: Getty

Immigration lawyer Alastair McClymont bluntly stated that the surge in appeals was partly due to the previous government’s relaxation of visa reviews in 2022 to meet tourism and employment needs:

“Visa is issued almost at will, and work visas lack strict review… The Immigration Bureau basically opens its doors.”

He said that some people who entered the country through intermediaries “buy roads” now appealed through refugee or humane reasons; while some short-term workers have become overdue and stranded.

If the residence application is wrongly rejected, they may face unemployment, be forced to leave the country or fall into illegal residence.

McClymontCall on the government to consider giving some kind of “amnesty” to solve the group problems left over from the original policy relaxation.

Another immigration lawyer, Lucy Tothill, pointed out that the government’s cuts in public service resources are also one of the important reasons for the increase in the number of appeals.

The waiting period for interviews at the Refugee Status Department of the Immigration Bureau is too long, resulting in the case being “sheld” for a long time.

“Many people cannot wait for visas for a long time, cannot work, and cannot reunite with their families, and their lives are under high pressure,” she said.

Simon Laurent, chairman of the Immigration and Investment Association and senior lawyer, emphasized that a large number of refugee and protection applications poured in after the border reopens, and many cases require repeated appeals, further slowing down the process.

“A few years ago, humanitarian appeals could be achieved in about four or five months. Now it could take nine months or even a year, and applicants are forced to be in the ‘gray zone’ for a long time,” he said.

New Zealand Immigration Minister Erica Stanford said she has been with the court presidentMartin TreadwelThe judge met to discuss the surge in cases and the increase in personnel. The appointment process is currently underway.

She stressed that the government had allocated an additional $10 million last year to add 52 full-time staff to the Ministry of Commerce, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), including two new refugee protection teams.

However, she made it clear that the governmentImmigration amnesty will not be consideredthe reason is that every appeal should be heard through case-by-case procedures to maintain fair and due process.

Other countries have experienced similar growth, and the Australian Administrative Review Tribunal is currently dealing with more than80,000 casesThe situation in immigration appeals is equally serious.

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