What is the complete list of NZ Green list occupations?
There are over 100 hard-to-fill roles included on the Green List, including roles in construction, engineering, trades, health and tech. Note: The full and updated list is avilable on the Immigration New Zealand website. Some occupations will need to work in New Zealand for two years before applying for residence, via the Work to Residence pathway. As of April 2023, thirty-two new health roles have been added to the Green List and all health roles on the Green List will be moved to the Straight to Residence pathway.
- Construction Project Manager Project Builder
- Quantity Surveyor
- Surveyor
- Chemical Engineer
- Civil Engineering Technician Civil Engineer
- Electrical Engineer
- Electronics Engineer
- Electrical Engineering Technician
- Electronic Engineering Technician
- Environmental Engineer
- Geotechnical Engineer
- Industrial Engineer
- Materials Engineer
- Mechanical Engineer
- Production or Plant Engineer
- Structural Engineer
- Engineering Professionals (Not elsewhere classified)
- Telecommunications Engineers
- Telecommunications Network Engineers
- Addiction practitioner/alcohol & drug clinician
- Audiometrist
- Chiropractor
- Clinical dental technician
- Clinical physiologists (sleep, renal, exercise, respiratory, neurology, and cardiac)
- Counsellor
- Dental specialists
- Dental technician
- Dental therapist
- Dentist
- Dietician
- Dispensing optician
- Drug and alcohol counsellor
- Enrolled nurse
- Genetic counsellor
- Medical laboratory pre-analytical technician
- Medical resonance imaging technologist
- Nuclear medicine technologist
- Nurse practitioner
- Optometrist
- Oral health therapist
- Orthotic and prosthetic technician
- Orthotist/prosthetist
- Osteopath
- Paramedic/emergency medical technician
- Perfusionist (cardiac)
- Pharmacist
- Physiotherapist
- Play therapist (hospital)
- Social worker
- Speech language therapist
- Sterile processing technician
- General Practitioner
- Registered nurses
- Midwives
- Anesthetist
- Psychiatrist
- Surgeons (Including General Surgeons, Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Neurosurgeon, Orthopaedic Surgeon, Otorhinolaryngologist, Urologist and Vascular Surgeon)
- Other Medical Practitioners (including Dermatologist, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Ophthalmologist Diagnostic and Interventional Radiologist and Radiation Oncologist)
- Resident Medical Officer
- Medical Laboratory Scientist, Clinical Psychologists and Psychologists, Physicist (Medical)
- Orthoptist
- Veterinarian
- Other Spatial Scientist
- Environmental Research Scientist Food Technologist
- ICT Managers ($120,000)
- Software Engineer ($120,000)
- ICT Security Specialist ($120,000)
- Multimedia Specialists ($95,000)
- Analyst Programmer
- Developer Programmer
- Software Tester
- Software and Applications Programmers not elsewhere classified
Roles added to Green List work to residence tier from March 2023:
- Registered Auditors (from March 2023)
- Civil construction supervisors
- Gasfitters
- Drain layers
- Skilled crane operators
- Skilled civil machine operators
- Halal slaughterers
- Skilled motor mechanics
- Skilled telecommunications technicians
- All secondary school teachers
- Primary school teachers
What is the NZ immigration Green List criteria?
To qualify for a work visa under the Green List, an overseas applicant will have to have a job offer that matches that occupation’s description or requirements and be able to prove that their overseas qualification meets the comparable New Zealand qualification standard for their occupation.
It is not simply a matter of matching a job title,and it’s a very narrowly defined list. Employers need to be accredited to be able to offer a candidate a job role.
The specific qualification requirements that aredetailed on the Green List are all based on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF) unless stated otherwise.
For a candidate to qualify under that framework,the applicant must either get a New Zealand Qualifications Authority assessment of their qualification, or have a qualification that is on the list of qualifications exempt from assessment.
To find out more about the green list application,including the cost and criteria read this guide from our immigration partner New Zealand Immigration Law. The guide to the Green list Visa.
To find out how to get a job offer or be matched to an employer, check out our recruitment services for offshore migrants here: