The right to work in NZ

Before recruiting a dental professional, either as an employee or a contractor, legally you need to make sure they have the right to work in NZ.

People entitled are those who:

• Are NZ or Australian citizens (including those born in in the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau)
• Have a NZ residence visa
• Have a NZ work visa or a condition on their NZ temporary visa showing they are allowed to work here.

You must keep evidence to prove your employee's right to work in NZ, which can be one of the following:

• NZ passport
• NZ birth certificate
• NZ citizenship certificate
• Australian passport, citizenship or permanent resident certificate
• Other passport with suitable work visa
• Residence class visa (eg resident visa or permanent resident visa)
• Electronic eVisa allowing work (eg working holiday).

There are penalties (maximum $50,000) for hiring a person who is not entitled to work for you. It is important to check and keep records to show that you completed the checks.

Candidates do not need to have a valid visa to be offered a job, but they must have one that allows them to work in NZ by the time they begin working for you.

You can get more details on these obligations at www.employment.govt.nz.

You must also ensure that any of your workers who have visas actually follow the terms and conditions of their visa. VisaView let's you easily check.