Letter of non-objection criteria

The criteria that the Screen Industry Guild use for granting or declining a letter of non-objection are defined in Section W3.1 of Immigration Instructions - Temporary Entry 2.
Link to Immigration NZ Operations Manual

Further VISA Information

They are:

  • the applicant is of international distinction, or particular ethnic significance, or is manifestly essential to the presentation or production; or
  • the applicant's engagement does not put at risk the engagement of New Zealand entertainers or professionals in equivalent work unless the wider benefits to be obtained from the applicant's employment outweigh the loss of job opportunities for New Zealanders; or
  • they have given appropriate consideration to engaging available New Zealand entertainers or professionals.
  • the applicant is working in New Zealand for more than 14 days (14 days is inclusive of the date of arrival and the date of departure).

Request a letter of non-objection

Striking the right balance

Overseas productions are generally welcomed and most applications proceed routinely and quickly. If there are issues Immigration New Zealand tries to resolve the disagreement and if that is unsuccessful they refer the application to the Minister for a decision.  If you are a member of the Screen Industry Guild this means sometimes you may see some overseas crew come in without having all the information behind the decision.

Getting the balance right for the overall benefit of crew in New Zealand is a vital role of the Screen Industry Guild and one that we cannot do without members' support.

‍If you are a production coming to New Zealand your experience will be much smoother if you employ an experienced New Zealand line producer who knows the process, has a local network of contacts and will be able to efficiently make things happen.