March 2014 News Archive

Archived Daily FX News from the TorFX Foreign Exchange Specialists...

Support for unrestricted Commonwealth movement25 Mar at 5 AM

An online petition suggests that the majority of people would support a system that would allow free movement between the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. However, the complications of such a system would have to go further than simply doing away with restrictions on work permits and visas. A poll set up by the Commonwealth...

Migration to New Zealand hits new record high20 Mar at 11 AM

Fewer departures and an increase in the number of arrivals meant that in the year to February migration to New Zealand hit a record high. According to Statistics New Zealand the net gain of migrants over the last year rose to 55,100. This is close to double the gain of 29,000 recorded a year earlier. Arrivals of migrants hit a record...

Chilean family face deportation from New Zealand13 Mar at 5 AM

A Chilean family living in New Zealand is likely to be deported if they cannot find the means to leave the country voluntarily by the end of the month. Christchurch resident Mauricio Ravet claims that he, his wife, and their two daughters do not have the money to fly back to Chile. Mr Ravet added that his daughter Kate was born in New...

Prince Harry to visit New Zealand and Australia2 Mar at 9 PM

Prince Harry will spend time serving in Australia before visiting New Zealand in a non-military capacity, according to reports. The visit Down Under is likely to come before the prince officially ends his military career. According to an article published in the Evening Standard, the fourth-in-line to the English throne has been thinking...

Immigration pressure causes concern in New Zealand26 Mar at 8 AM

The rapid rise in the number of immigrants choosing New Zealand as a place in which to make a new home has become a cause for concern. Economists are worried that the pressure being put on housing could result in increased inflation and a hike in interest rates. Immigration is now at its highest level in a decade with most long-term...

New Zealand flag could lose the Union Jack17 Mar at 8 AM

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has said that if he is re-elected he will introduce a referendum on altering the design of the country’s flag. The elections have been slated for September, and Key said decisions would need to be made as to how New Zealand presents itself to the world after 2015. The Kiwi flag is currently features...

More NZ immigrants from China than UK12 Mar at 9 AM

China has overtaken the UK as the biggest source of migrants moving to New Zealand. Permanent residence was granted to 5,794 Chinese citizens between June 2012 and July 2013, an increase of 7.1 per cent on the same period a year earlier. The number of UK citizens granted permanent residence was 5,184, a drop on 14.1 per cent. The third...

More Brits issued visas to help rebuild Christchurch5 Mar at 8 AM

More visas have been issued to British expats helping to rebuild Christchurch than any other nation. According to Immigration New Zealand nearly 3,000 have been granted since the devastating earthquakes of 2011 claimed the lives of 185 people and caused an estimated £20 billion in damage. According to an INZ spokeswoman, the scale of the...

Risk management systems to be introduced at Immigration25 Mar at 9 AM

Immigration New Zealand has said that it will be introducing new systems to help with risk governance after it was discovered that 300 student visas had been approved even though some of the documents included in the applications were fraudulent. A study by PricewaterhouseCoopers found that the immigration department had poor communication...

Drop in number of foreign students choosing New Zealand18 Mar at 9 AM

Despite measures by the New Zealand government to attract more students from abroad, the number of those being approved to study in the country has dropped by around a quarter since 2009. Last year saw a 10 per cent decline in the number of visa approvals compared to a year earlier. Last week Michael Woodhouse, Immigration Minister, said...

Chinese students refused entry to New Zealand11 Mar at 9 AM

A number of Chinese nationals attempting to enter New Zealand on student visas have been turned away because of poor academic performance. Border staff at Auckland Airport reportedly denied entry to 14 students returning from China where they celebrated the Lunar New Year. Of the 32 Chinese students who were stopped at immigration, several...

New Zealand set for salary boom4 Mar at 9 AM

Brits currently struggling with the gloomy economic situation at home are being advised to look to New Zealand where salaries are expected to rise by as much as 20 per cent over the coming twelve months. The 2013 Robert Walters salary survey examined salaries from around the globe last year and has made predictions for the coming year for...

International student revenue slumps in New Zealand30 Mar at 6 PM

Christchurch's tertiary education has been hit by a 37 per cent decrease in international students as a result of ongoing earthquakes. The city is usually New Zealand's second-largest hub for international education, meaning that the drop is likely to cost the sector over $10 million in lost revenue in 2011 alone, reports stuff.co.nz....

Lingerie thieves caught in New Zealand29 Mar at 6 PM

Three light-fingered Spanish women, who stole lingerie worth thousands of dollars from a department store in Dunedin, have been told to leave the country by immigration officials. The women, all nurses, admitted stealing $1533 of underwear. Police prosecutor Tim Hambleton said 24-year-old Nuria Rutllan Ferrer, 26-year-old Neus Gomez-Ponce...

New wave of Irish emigration settles in New Zealand28 Mar at 6 PM

New Zealand is now one of the countries attracting Irish emigrants who are facing tough times in Ireland. Of the 40,000 who fled Ireland in 2011, nearly 2,000 call New Zealand home with many more on their way. However, the emigrant generations already in New Zealand have found disparities in the motives of the newcomers for emigrating to...

New Zealand Migrants angry over lost visa fees 27 Mar at 6 PM

An immigration adviser from Golden Bay owes just under $500,000 to creditors across the world and is unlikely to pay any of them. Living New Zealand Ltd went into liquidation last year after owner Glen Standing was fined over $20,000 and had his licence annulled after giving bad advice to a client, reports the Press. A final...

Minor offences could prevent further visas in New Zealand26 Mar at 6 PM

Immigrants convicted of minor offences in New Zealand such as drink-driving may not be given further visas to stay in the country. Immigration NZ has changed its operational instructions to allow its officers to refuse subsequent visas, reports NZ Herald. The agency's service support general manager Rob Stevens said it will apply to...

Auckland to lead new job growth across New Zealand23 Mar at 6 PM

Almost 94,000 new jobs are anticipated in New Zealand over the next two years, especially in Auckland. However, unemployment will decrease slowly to about 5.4 per cent, reveals Government forecasts. New Labour Department projections imply slow but steady job growth, reports Auckland Now. Unemployment is still high at 6.3 per cent,...

New Zealand growth decelerates more than forecast22 Mar at 6 PM

New Zealand’s economic growth decelerated to half the rate economists predicted in the final quarter as manufacturing dropped, adding to the idea of no change in interest rates this year. Gross domestic product increased 0.3 per cent in the final quarter of 2011 from the previous quarter, when it rose a revised 0.7 per cent, said...

Marmite shortage in New Zealand leads to panic21 Mar at 6 PM

Many British expats in New Zealand love Marmite on toast as it brings back fond memories of home. But they have been delivered an unpalatable message - jars of Marmite on supermarket shelves will become increasingly bare, reports the Daily Mail. Production of the yeast extract spread has been suspended due to one of the factory towers...

Police made mistakes during raid on Megaupload boss20 Mar at 4 PM

A police blunder could lead to luxury cars and jewellery that were seized during a police raid being returned to Megaupload creator Kim Dotcom. The property was seized during a raid on the New Zealand house of the file-sharing site's owner, reports the BBC. But a New Zealand judge has ruled the court order used to validate the...

Immigration New Zealand will simplify visa process20 Mar at 9 AM

The Immigration Minister for New Zealand Nathan Guy gave his support to Immigration New Zealand’s proposed plans for it’s department which it believes will make further improvements in its procedures over the next three years. The plans, called "Vision for 2015", will hopefully enable the immigration department to give more...

Airlines will be fined for not vetting travellers to New Zealand properly19 Mar at 6 PM

International airlines which do not guarantee passengers have the correct documents to enter New Zealand will be fined under new border rules. Some 788 travellers have been declined admission at New Zealand airports in the last year. Reasons include using fake documentation, not possessing a visa or having previous criminal convictions,...

Dotcom gave ultimatum to NZ officials15 Mar at 6 PM

'Billionaire' Kim Dotcom threatened to revoke his request to live in New Zealand unless immigration officials agreed to meet his deadline, reveals new documents. Officials approved the Megaupload creator residency last year after determining the money he might bring to the country compensated for concerns about criminal convictions in his...

Hijacker tells court NZ police threatened her14 Mar at 6 PM

A Somali woman who was convicted of attempting to hijack a plane flying from Blenheim to Christchurch six years ago accuses police of threatening she would be extradited to the United States and killed if she did not admit the crime. Asha Ali Abdille was sentenced to nine years in prison last year with no-parole for of six years for...

New Zealand immigration welcomed Dotcom13 Mar at 6 PM

The New Zealand Overseas Investment Office granted Kim Dotcom permission to purchase three properties despite his dodgy past, but Simon Power, the former associate finance minister, prevented it. Dotcom is currently on bail waiting a three-week hearing due to a request by the United States to extradite him on a number of charges including...

New Zealand becoming playground for super rich12 Mar at 6 PM

Billionaires around the world are being drawn to New Zealand by pristine coastlines and relaxed lifestyle. Recent billionaires who have entered include American Peter Thiel and Russian Alexander Abramov.Tony Malkin, whose family own the Empire State Building has also bought a property near to Queenstown, reports the Otago Daily Times....

Drop in migrants hits NZ government coffers9 Mar at 6 PM

Immigration New Zealand may be heading for its biggest deficit ever due to the drop in people entering the country. A paper to the Immigration Minister reports the agency's account is set to hit a deficit of $44 million by June, an increase from $28.1 million last October, reports the NZ Herald. The paper says it is largely due to a...

Auckland Airport welcomes new vision for Immigration 8 Mar at 6 PM

Auckland Airport has welcomed the launch by Immigration New Zealand of their hopes for 2015. The vision is a blueprint for making the immigration policy better as well as the processes to create better outcomes for New Zealand. Charles Spillane, Auckland Airport’s general manager for corporate affairs, congratulated INZ on its work,...

US files extradition papers for Dotcom8 Mar at 9 AM

The US government has filed a formal request for Megaupload's founder to be extradited from New Zealand. Prosecutors had 45 days to make the request following Kim Dotcom's capture in January. The papers also ask for three other members of Megaupload's staff to be extradited, reports the BBC. The men are charged with making it easy for...

Proposed immigration system in NZ favours rich6 Mar at 6 PM

Poor migrants who can’t speak English language will find it harder to get residency under the new two-tier immigration scheme that favours the rich. The changes, which have been discovered through a leaked Cabinet paper, will make procuring residency tougher for parents, who now won’t be able to fly in children who are dependent,...

James Cameron must spend just 44 days a year in New Zealand for residency5 Mar at 9 AM

Hollywood honcho James Cameron claims he wants New Zealand to be his home, but just has to spend 44 days a year in the country – and doesn't have to be there at all in his first year. New documents reveal that James Cameron will only have to spend 88 days over two years to realize his residency requirements. It is believed he paid...

UK biometric enrolment centre to reopen2 Mar at 6 PM

The immigration of the UK has said that a new biometric enrolment centre in New Zealand’s Christchurch will re-open on 5 March this year. The UK Border Agency closed the centre in February 2011 after a severe earthquake in Christchurch. At the moment visa applicants must visit the mobile biometric enrolment unit, which is there every...

Fake passport leads to prison1 Mar at 6 PM

A Nigerian man has been put in prison for over two years for going into New Zealand almost 10 years ago using a false passport. Jeffrey Ugochukwu Orji, 39, was condemned to two years and three months in prison in the Pukekohe District Court earlier this week, after being found guilty of having a fake passport and eight counts of using the...