While you can find jobs all year round, the best time of year to look for a job in New Zealand is between late February and November. Because of our Southern Hemisphere summer, many businesses take extended breaks for the holidays, from early to mid December until early February.

If you can, we recommend visiting New Zealand for a 2-4 week holiday prior to relocating. This would give you time to explore the country to decide where you want to be based, and meet with the Absolute IT team to discuss the possibility of job options prior to your move.

We recommend that you tailor your CV or resume to suit our job market. New Zealand employers expect a high level of information, and evidence of your achievements included in your CV.

You’ll need at least two references, covering your last five years of employment, so make sure you secure a few referees as soon as possible.

We recommend that your CV is between 1-3 pages, with your most recent experience listed first.

Your CV should include the following information:

• Contact details
• Visa status
• Availability
• Short summary of your work history and skills, and some indication of the roles you are interested in
• Key skills and technical skills
• Detailed work history; company names & dates
• Education
• Indication that you have referees available

You can download the Absolute IT CV Template here. [link]

If you are looking for further assistance, or if you’d like feedback on your CV, please contact the Absolute IT team.

It is unusual for employers to offer you a role without first meeting you, unless there is a high demand for your specialist skills.

In general, you can expect to complete on average 2-3 interviews before a job offer is made. It is now common to attend online video interviews; the team at Absolute IT can help you prepare for this.

You should also expect to be asked to complete personality profiling and competency testing, prior to job offers.

New Zealand interviews are often:

• Formal (appropriate formal clothing is required, even for online video interviews).
• Conducted by a panel.
• Competency based.
• Based around situational questions. i.e Tell me about a time when…

It is important that you have conducted background research on the organisation you are interviewing with, and make sure you highlight your relevant experience based on the job description, and employer’s needs.

If you accept a job offer, employers will generally expect you to be available to begin work within 4-8 weeks, if not sooner.

If you require further assistance, the Absolute IT team is always happy to help with some example questions and interview preparation.

It makes sense to find out all you can about Aotearoa, New Zealand before you get here. Here are a few helpful links to help you begin your research:

• Learn more about your next steps from Immigration NZ
• Register with Absolute IT ([link)
• Browse current jobs in New Zealand
• Check out our industry reports, including the latest salary data [add link]
• Visit our biggest news sites: RNZ, New Zealand Herald, Otago Daily Times, Stuff.co.nz, Newsroom
• Get a sense of our housing, with Property listings: TradeMe Property, Realestate.co.nz 
• For your travel and holiday plans: Tourism New Zealand

• Before you start applying, make sure your CV is up-to-date, and contains all the information that NZ employers might expect to see, and ensure your referees have been notified that someone may be in contact soon.

• Customise your CV for each job you apply for, to show how your experience is relevant to that particular job: make it easy for a potential employer to see why you are the right fit

• Be sure to keep a record of organisations you have applied to, and who you are applying with. It can get confusing when you start being contacted by different people asking about roles with similar titles, so make a note of any job reference. At Absolute IT, we’ll always ask you if you have applied for a role directly, or through another agency, to avoid you being represented twice.

• Check your tech. Video meetings and interviews are highly likely, so get your set up prepped and ready for when the interview requests come rolling in.

• When you apply for a role advertised by us, you only need to apply once. We always respond to applicants within 48 hours, so you’ll definitely hear from us, and don’t need to worry.

We’ve prepared a useful timeline to help you plan. Here’s what you need to do before you move to New Zealand, and when you need to do it:

6-12 Months Before Move

• The immigration process can take considerable time, particularly for those wishing to move permanently. So start early by visiting Immigration NZ to find out what’s required.
• For immigration advice and assistance you can contact IMMagine immigration consultants, one of our trusted partners
• Open a bank account in NZ and start building a savings history with one of NZ’s largest banks –Westpac
• You can arrange migration insurance 12 months in advance. If you want to know what it entails – here is a helpful short video from Migration Cover

3 Months Before Move

• Time to make initial contact with Absolute IT at recruitment@absoluteit.co.nz. Our consultants will start the ball rolling with help planning your timetable and starting your job search.
• As suitable opportunities come to hand, our consultants can arrange interviews for you as soon as you land in New Zealand — or even sooner via Skype.
• In the meantime, we’ll help you update your CV to suit New Zealand expectations.
• Now’s a good time to book your flights (ensuring you have a return ticket if your visa requires it) and, if you’re on a working holiday visa, we recommend you buy travel insurance for the length of your stay.

1 Month Before Move

• Obtain references from your employers – you’ll need at least two references covering your last five years of employment.
• Get your current banking sorted in terms of standing orders and direct debits, and settle any outstanding debts if you’re moving permanently.
• Complete and send your tax return if required.
• Book your NZ accommodation.
• Open a Gmail email account.

When relocating to New Zealand you will need the services of a host of reliable companies. We partner with following reputable firms who we know will look after you:

• Banking Services – Westpac
• Immigration Advice & Assistance – IMMagine
• Foreign Exchange and money transfers – TorFX
• Pension Transfers Services – Pension Transfers
• Migration Insurance – Migration Cover

By law, we are unable to offer immigration advice, and assisting with visas is outside of our scope of practice.

However, we partner with an Auckland based immigration consultancy, IMMagine Australia and New Zealand Immigration. They are able to provide professional advice on visa eligibility and how the visa process works, and can represent you in your dealings with the NZ government.

We understand that recent changes to immigration rules can make the process of securing work and resident visas extremely complex, and we recommend working with IMMagine to help you to navigate this part of your journey.

What can you expect when you contact IMMagine?

• You can go to their website and carry out a free preliminary visa eligibility assessment. This will take 20 – 30 minutes to complete.
• A licensed advisor will contact you and set up a time to consult with you (typically on a video call) to explain the next steps in the process, time frames and costs.

As a general rule, NZ employers want to be assured of the following:

• You are serious about moving to NZ,
• You qualify for a visa, subject to a job offer,
• You have a high standard of competency in English, and
• Your expected arrival date and availability is not too far in the future.