Transcript RFSC update - NRRF 2014 - Immigration New Zealand

RFSC update - NRRF 2014
Overview
• Refugee Family Support Category (RFSC)
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Key statistics
Invitation to Apply (ITA)
Update on Tier Two queue
RFSC sponsor accommodation undertaking
RFSC DVD
• Immigration Profiling Branch (IPB)
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Statistics
RFSC residence process and common issues
Accommodation plans
INZ medicals
RFSC – key statistics
• 2013/2014 – 113 ITAs issued representing 457
individuals
• 2013/2014 – 87 residence applications approved
representing 334 individuals (84 Tier One / 250 Tier
Two)
• Total of 3112 people invited to apply for residence
under RFSC and 1161 people approved residence
RFSC Tier one 2013/2014
• Registrations received – 91 (339 nominees)
• ITA Issued – 41 (157 nominees)
• Declined – 28 (99 nominees)
• Withdrawn – 3 (14 nominees)
• On hand – 50 (188 nominees)
RFSC Tier two 2013/2014
• Registrations Received – 10 (42 nominees)
• ITA Issued – 72 (300 nominees)
• Declined – 53 (241 nominees)
• Withdrawn – 1 (4 nominees)
• On hand – 407 (1900 nominees)
Common reasons for ITA decline
• Sponsor does not meet tier one eligibility criteria as
has immediate family in New Zealand or sponsor was
not granted residence in New Zealand on the basis of
refugee status
• Applied under tier two and tier two is not currently
open
• Registered to sponsor a relative not included in list of
approved relatives
Progress on tier two queue
• In the three day opening period (17-19 April 2012) 763 tier
two registrations representing 3372 nominees were received.
As of 1 July 2014 there are 407 registrations representing
1900 nominees in tier two queue
• No date set for re-opening of tier two
• Comprehensive statistics about the RFSC are publically
available on INZ website www.immigration.govt.nz – search
“refugee”, click on “Refugee and Protection Unit”, click on
Learn more about, and download statistics for the RFSC.
RFSC Sponsor accommodation undertaking
• RFSC sponsors required to ensure that adequate
accommodation for their relatives is available upon arrival in
NZ and continues to be available during the first 24 months of
relatives' residence in NZ
• Undertaking is included to ensure relatives are not
accommodated in overcrowded situations on/post arrival or
without accommodation
• Sponsors are not required to financially support relatives after
arrival as with other family sponsorship categories
• Accommodation questionnaire sent with ITA to help sponsors
demonstrate to INZ that they have a realistic plan for
accommodating relatives
RFSC Settlement DVD
• Settlement DVD specific to approved RFSC migrants has
been developed by INZ
• Includes information on: laws in New Zealand, support
services, jobs and money, health services, learning
English and education, daily living and immigration and
citizenship
• Available to view on INZ website
www.immigration.govt.nz search “refugee”, click on
“Refugee and Protection Unit” – link to the DVD is at the
bottom of the page
• Currently only in English and plans to translate into most
common RFSC languages in future
IPB’s role
• IPB processes the following applications from
nationals from the list of 25 countries
• Work visas for asylum seekers onshore
• Residence application for people granted refugee
status now called refugee and protection
• Residence applications under RFSC Tiers 1 & 2
• Not the only INZ branch to process RFSC
• Only process 40% of all refugee related
applications
• Any other refugee related application that may be
referred to the IPB
Statistics for IPB
• 2013/2014
• Total of 122 decisions made on refugee related applications
• 56 RFSC tiers 1 & 2 (214 people approved)
• 42 Refugee & Protection
• 24 Ministerial Directions
• 107 approved and 15 declined ( approval rate of 88%)
• 2012/2013
• Total of 110 decisions made on refugee related applications
• 90 approved and 20 declined (approval rate of 82%)
Current on hand applications – IPB
• Residence
• RFSC tiers 1 and 2 – 67
• Refugee & Protection – 7
• Temporary
• Work – 1
• Total on hand for the IPB including all other categories is for
branch is currently 830. No managed queues for either
residence or temporary.
Process for RFSC residence applications
• Lodged at either onshore or offshore. Information on
where to lodge your application can be found on the
INZ website at www.immigration.govt.nz
• checked to see that they meet acceptance criteria,
accepted and receipted in AMS, assessed to whether
they require referral
• transferred to IPB in Wellington, applicant advised
• Assessed against normal immigration instructions
Process for RFSC residence applications cont.
• Assessed in more detail against character provisions
depending on a number of triggers such as military
background, associations with regimes, employment and/or
education history etc. (only small number of applications)
• All applications PPI’d if they do not meet instructions for
approval on Reputation Risk grounds
• Reputation Risk concerns put to client will come from open
source material
• Any decline letter gives the reasons
Common issues with RFSC Residence
applications
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Health issues
Fraudulent or non existent documentation
Some passports not recognised
Difficulty establishing family links
Identity difficult to establish – no documentation
Unrelated people included in application
Names, ages and quantity of family members often differ
from sponsors original residence application
• Customary adoptions – no documentation
• National Security checks can delay a decision
• Requests for additional information are often requested but
not received which slows the assessment process.
What IPB considers when reviewing the RFSC
sponsor accommodation plan
• Inclusion of a realistic plan showing how sponsor is
going to cover costs until relatives can be assessed for
their own income support post arrival (which could be
community support or plan to stay with someone in
community who owns their own home etc.)
• Sponsor’s current accommodation and whether it is
privately owned or rented.
• If rented, a written authority would normally be requested
to confirm landlord agrees to the additional family
member/s being housed there even temporarily
What IPB considers when reviewing the RFSC
sponsor accommodation plan cont.
• What support sponsor may have from other members of the
community and community groups in terms of having a home
available for when the family arrives
• Sponsors financial position is also considered in situations where
sponsor states they will obtain and fund a rental property for
relatives. Is this realistic?
• If approved, the application goes through a second person check to
ensure all instructions have been met and the case officer has
applied them correctly (includes a review of the accommodation
plan to ensure consistency across all INZ officers)
INZ medicals
• From August 2013 rules for RFSC medicals changed
to allow medical to be undertaken and submitted at
the end of the residence application process
• Saves time and money for applicants in situation
where application is unable to be unaccepted for
non-medical reason
• This change is included in ITA letter
Primary Contacts for IPB
• Lisa Gould
• Manager – Immigration Profiling Branch
• [email protected]
• Tel. 04-8965519
• Matt Burden
• Manager – Temporary Team
• [email protected]
• Tel. 04-8965526