Protecting your inheritance from your spouse or partner
How do I protect my inheritance from my spouse or partner? Sometimes we are lucky enough to receive a gift or inheritance from family members, either while they are alive…
Welcome to the Sharp Tudhope Lawyers’ blog. Here you will find topical information and advice relating to a wide range of areas of law, written by our legal experts.
Legal advice you can trust from a team with deep connections to our community.
Employment Law Changes Are On Their Way
The Employment Relations Amendment Bill was introduced to Parliament last week. It contains provisions rolling back the last government’s changes to individual terms of employment and to collective bargaining and…
Income Thresholds Rise For Residency And Work Visa Applications
On 15 January 2018 Immigration New Zealand increased the salary bands for Essential Skills work visa and Skilled Migrant residency visa applications. The increases are slight, and come about because…
Wage Thresholds Change For Residency And Work Visa Applications
On 15 January this year Immigration New Zealand (INZ) raised the thresholds for Essential Skills work visa and Skilled Migrant residency visa applications. The increases are small, and result from changes in the median income levels in New Zealand. In September 2017, Statistics New Zealand announced that the average earnings from salaries and wages had…
Caveat Emptor – An Ancient Roman Concept Is Still Alive!
As a lawyer who studied Latin in High School, I am delighted to see the phrase ‘caveat emptor’ in the national news this month. Too often we see people choosing…
Global Impact Visa – What You Need To Know
The Global Impact Visa (“GIV Visa”) aims to attract highly talented, successful and well-connected entrepreneurs to establish their ventures in New Zealand. The key benefit of the GIV Visa is that it offers flexibility to attract innovative global entrepreneurs, investors and start up teams who are not covered under the existing investor and entrepreneur visa…
Health Requirements And Medical Waivers For Immigration
Immigration policy requires an applicant who is applying for New Zealand residence to demonstrate that they have met the acceptable standard of health requirements. If a person does not meet these standards, they must undergo a health and medical waiver assessment. Acceptable standard of health Immigration New Zealand provides for a two-tiered system to determine…
Character Waivers Explained
What is a character waiver? To qualify for a visa in New Zealand, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) requires the applicant to be of good character. One of the most common reasons that clients will seek a character waiver is a prior drunk driving conviction. If you are aged 17 or over, you are required to…
Employers Of Migrants Face A Ban For Breaches Of Employment Law
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) now has powers to apply stand down periods on employer incurs penalties relating to employment standards. These powers are there to protect migrant workers from exploitation. This group of employees enjoy the same legal protection as domestic workers but are more vulnerable due to the reliance on…
Skilled Migrant Category Now Has An Extra Hurdle
The skilled migrant category changes bring an income threshold for applications under the Skilled Migrant residence category. For a role to be considered skilled, it must have a salary that matches the New Zealand median income of $48,859 a year. This change has allowed Immigration New Zealand to recognise that some jobs that might not…