Law News

Latest 10 news items tagged Law

New Zealand man deported from UK ahead of blessing ceremony5 Jun at 8 AM 2015

A New Zealand man has been deported from the UK after flying in for a blessing ceremony with his wife to be. Gareth Macrae and fiancée Lliwen Roberts had been planning to celebrate their nuptials in July in Wales. However, following the deportation the wedding may now have to be held in New Zealand. Mr Macrae explained that he had applied for a marriage settlement visa, but had had the application denied because the couple could not provide proof of a bank account holding the required minimum of £62,000. The groom to be said he was...

Immigration New Zealand cracks down on short-term visa abuse6 May at 8 AM 2015

A crack down on workers violating short-term visa rules appears to have been initiated by Immigration New Zealand. The move comes following an investigation into a company based in China that was contracted to do work for KiwiRail. The Chinese locomotive provider has been told that any future visa extensions would require a high level of scrutiny and would only be provided in exceptional circumstances. A probe by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment was conducted in April into employees who were on short-term visas...

Kim Dotcom faces deportation from New Zealand17 Apr at 10 AM 2015

Controversial internet entrepreneur and New Zealand resident Kim Dotcom could face deportation for not filling in his residency application correctly. The Megaupload website creator allegedly failed to declare that he had a conviction for dangerous driving. Katie Knowles, acting area manager for Immigration New Zealand, said the agency was currently looking into the situation. She added that in the interests of justice Dotcom has until the beginning of next month for his advisors to make submissions regarding the matter. Knowles...

China top nation for visitors to New Zealand15 Jan at 5 AM 2015

China is the number one nation for visitors to New Zealand. Immigration New Zealand has confirmed that it processes around 1000 visa requests from Chinese citizens every day. According to Asia’s deputy director of visas, Bruce Ballast, China is currently the main source for new arrivals to the country whether exchange students, tourists or those applying for permanent residence. Over the past three years there has been an 80 per cent increase in immigration applications from China, according to Ballast, and each year the rate grows...

NZ lawyer behind bars for fake immigration services13 Nov at 6 AM 2014

A lawyer posing as an immigration advisor in New Zealand has been handed a three-and-a-half year jail sentence. Richard James Martin, 49, was found guilty of 93 charges of immigration-related crimes. Through his company Richard Martin Immigration Limited Martin offered advice on immigration to 10 families between 2009 and 2010. Auckland District Court heard how the struck off lawyer forged lawyers’ signatures and used his company’s immigration advisors to sign off visa applications of clients even though they had never met...

Indian radio remark by INZ officer branded racist17 Oct at 7 AM 2014

A comment by a New Zealand Immigration officer suggesting that New Zealand residents are unlikely to tune into an Indian radio station has been attacked as being racist. The incident followed an application by a client of Ramya Sathiyanathan, an immigration lawyer, for a position as a beauty therapist. Ms Sathiyanathan said she received an email from an immigration officer telling her she was not convinced that the employer had made adequate attempts to find a kiwi employee before offering the position to an immigrant. A complaint has...

Immigration NZ accuses Chinese couple of child trafficking 10 Sep at 6 AM 2014

A tribunal in New Zealand has ruled that a Chinese couple attempting to bring a baby into the country on forged papers in order to gain residency is child trafficking. Immigration New Zealand denied entry to the husband in 2012 after it was discovered the baby’s birth certificate and other documents had been forged. The unnamed man had previously been living in New Zealand since 2008. The husband and wife have been trying to gain residency in New Zealand for four years, but their applications have been held up because of doubts over...

No change to NZ immigration rules15 Aug at 9 AM 2014

The New Zealand government has confirmed that it will not be making any major changes to immigrations laws, even though the number of migrants entering the country is on the increase. John Keys, the country’s Prime Minister, said this week that the New Zealand economy is growing at a steady pace and that the labour market continued to suffer from a lack of skilled workers. Although unemployment figures continue to fall, companies in New Zealand are still crying out for skilled workers from overseas, especially in the ICT and...

Climate refugees granted New Zealand residency8 Aug at 6 AM 2014

A family from the Pacific island nation of Tuvalu has been granted New Zealand residency by a court. The family has been granted legal status after claiming to be climate change refugees. Environmental lawyer David Estrin explained that Tuvalu is vulnerable to rising sea levels. He added that although the court ruling was not precedent setting, more people from small countries susceptible to flooding may apply for refugee status overseas. The family is believed to be the first granted residency on humanitarian grounds because climate...

New Zealand becoming more competitive23 May at 9 AM 2014

The global competitiveness of New Zealand is on the rebound. Over the last year the country has managed to claw back five places to hit number 20. The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, a Swiss-based survey of 60 economies has pushed New Zealand up from last year’s 25th place. The result puts the Kiwis closer to their neighbours Australia who have dropped from 16th to 17th place in the tables. Gary Sturgess, chief executive of New Zealand Institute of Management, said the higher placing was a reflection of how the country’s...