Certain professions in New Zealand can only be practiced if the person has been certified as competent to do that job by the governing occupation registration authority in that industry. If you intend working in one of those professions, then you will need to be certified BEFORE you can start working in New Zealand.
Which professions need Occupation Registration?
Below you will find a list of the occupations currently requiring registration :
- Architect
- Barrister or solicitor
- Chiropractor
- Clinical dental technician
- Clinical dental therapist
- Dental hygienist
- Dental technician
- Dental therapist
- Dentist
- Dietitian
- Dispensing optician
- Electrician
- Electrical service technician
- Enrolled nurse
- Line mechanic
- Medical laboratory scientist/technologist
- Medical laboratory technician
- Medical practitioner
- Medical radiation technologist
- Nurses and midwives
- Occupational therapist
- Optometrist
- Osteopath
- Pharmacist
- Physiotherapist
- Plumber, gasfitter and drainlayer
- Podiatrist
- Psychologist (see note below)
- Real estate agent
- Cadastral (Land Title) Surveyor
- Teacher
- Veterinarian
How to obtain your occupational registration
Each of these occupations has it’s own board, so if you need to register, it is best to do a Google search for your board to find out the specific requirements for your profession.
In general however each board will require you to submit information similar to :
- your current certificate of registration in South Africa
- your qualification certificates
- possibly an NZQA assessment of your qualification certificates
- details of your work experience including work references
- proof that you are proficient in English
In certain cases you will also be required to under go re-training and attend bridging courses before being granted a full license to practice your occupation. In these cases you are generally given a temporary / restricted license which allows you to work while completing the bridging training / courses.
Important
If you find your self in this situation, you may find that you will initially need to work for a lower salary until your full registration has been approved. This can takes months, so please plan for this when doing your budget planning.
For more info about how this will affect your immigration application you can visit the NZIS website HERE 