Since the Government announced changes to the Family Categories this year, a majority of the voices heard in response have been of complaint, and even allegations of bias towards the Indian community.
Court proceedings filed in the name of the Sikh community were always doomed to fail as the Government clearly has the right to change Immigration Policy as it sees fit.
In announcing the changes to the policy, the Government mentioned that the Family Parent and Sibling/Adult Child Categories were problematic for the New Zealand Government because migrants under these categories were proving to be, overall, a drain on Government resources, adding little economic benefit to the country.
Figures were quoted regarding the number of migrants subsequently claiming social welfare benefits.
From our own experience, this also seemed to be the case.
Welfare claims
Whilst sponsors signed forms promising to support their parents, we often had many sponsors bringing their parents into our office within days of their arrival, making enquiries as to how they can make claims for Social Welfare benefits.
Many of the migrants coming in under Sibling/Adult Child Category, whilst supposedly having genuine job offers, did not have such genuine offers at all. They did not have the necessary English language or work skills to enable them to obtain meaningful employment.
Many of these migrants were destined for the closest Work & Income New Zealand (WINZ) office.
Personal responsibility
Therefore, in complaining loudly about changes to these policies, some personal responsibility must be taken within migrant communities in New Zealand about how the system has been exploited in the past with so many migrants, coming under Family Categories, were in a desperate rush to take advantage of New Zealand’s already strained social welfare system.
It was clearly not the intention of immigration policy to bring family members into New Zealand simply to enable them to claim unemployment benefits and most hard working Indian migrants would find such practice abhorrent, yet it was primarily due to the exploitation of this system that the changes were required.
On the other hand, since the abolition of the Centre of Gravity principle and the introduction of the two-tier system, our office has had many delighted sponsors who would now be able to bring their parents to New Zealand on Residence Visas.
Sponsors delighted
For many years, sponsors who worked hard and had high income and a clear ability to sponsor their parents were frustrated by the refusal of the Government to recognise their contribution to this country in denying them their wish to care for their parents in New Zealand.
Those sponsors have now been duly recognised and granted the right to sponsor their parents for Residence Visas if they meet the income threshold.
There are a substantial number of sponsors, who work hard in their own businesses or in employment, declare and pay their taxes. These people have now been justly rewarded by the ability to sponsor their parents despite the fact that those parents may have a majority of their children living in their home country.
Stopping abuse
The changes in the policy therefore directly reflect the Government’s stated intention to crack down on the abuse of the Social Welfare system and reward people who choose to work hard and contribute to the country.
For many of our clients, it was a source of embarrassment to have the Indian community publicly associated with opposition to these changes through high profile court proceedings, which did nothing more than to continue the false association of social welfare abuse with migrant communities.
The Indian community must therefore now embrace these policy changes and look for means in which their family members can qualify for Permanent Residence through the making a contribution to New Zealand.
Alastair McClymont is the Principal of McClymont & Associates Barrister & Solicitors. Immigration is among his specailities.
