New Zealand Becoming a ‘back Door’ for Workers Seeking Australian Employment
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Overseas professionals are increasingly using New Zealand as a stepping stone too gain employment in Australia, raising concerns about compromised standards and a drain on Pacific Island nations.
A concerning trend has emerged where skilled workers are leveraging the Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Arrangement (TTMRA) to circumvent Australian regulatory requirements, gaining access to jobs – and even citizenship – despite potentially not meeting direct qualification standards. An inquiry reveals a surge in registrations via New Zealand across numerous professions, including nursing, teaching, building trades, and aviation, with some sectors seeing three times more applicants via New Zealand than from all other international sources combined.
A Loophole in Mutual Recognition
The TTMRA, enacted in 1988, allows for the reciprocal recognition of professional qualifications between Australia and New zealand. While intended to facilitate mobility for qualified professionals, the arrangement is being exploited by individuals seeking a faster, less rigorous path to Australian employment. “Mutual recognition should be a pathway for competence, not a way around standards,” stated Adjunct Professor Kim Lovegrove, chair of the International Building Quality Center. He emphasized the need for nationally agreed qualification criteria to ensure mobility supports competence rather than undermining it.
The issue stems from differences in qualification standards and regulatory oversight between the two countries. For example, in the nursing profession, 1,037 nurses registered in Australia via New Zealand in 2024-25. Alarmingly, nine out of ten of these nurses did not initially train in New Zealand, instead using the country as a convenient registration point before seeking employment in Australia. This influx has contributed to a notable exodus of nurses from Pacific Island nations, pushing their already strained healthcare systems to the brink.
Annie Butler, national secretary of the Australian Nursery and midwifery Federation, highlighted the ethical implications, stating, “We do no that there is a bit of a stepping stone issue of people coming, having no intention, really, of contributing to the workforce in New Zealand, but doing what they need to do there to get to Australia.” A report by Public Services International (PSI) in December warned that this drain on Pacific nations is creating a healthcare crisis and exposing workers to exploitation,including substandard wages in Australian care facilities. “Pacific health systems are being hollowed out to prop up the care economies of richer neighbours,” said Tom Reddington, PSI’s secretary for the Oceania subregion.
Expanding Across Professions
The trend extends beyond nursing and teaching. More than four out of five overseas-trained Chinese medicine practitioners registering in Australia now do so via New Zealand. Ninety of the 103 paramedics registered in Australia over the past two years utilized trans-Tasman mutual recognition. The number of physiotherapists registering through New Zealand has doubled, attracted by lower fees and faster processing times. Even in highly regulated fields like aviation,registrations via New Zealand have soared: commercial aircraft pilot registrations rose from 37 in 2021 to 138 in 2024,and flight instructor registrations climbed from 11 to 62 over the same period.
While the Civil Aviation Safety Authority maintains confidence in the qualifications of New Zealand-licensed aviation professionals, the broader trend raises concerns about the integrity of the system.
Regulatory blind Spots and Calls for Reform
the lack of comprehensive tracking by Australian regulators exacerbates the problem. Energy Safe Victoria, for example, does not differentiate between electricians registering via New Zealand and those from other Australian territories. This lack of data hinders effective monitoring and enforcement. The Australian Council of Trade unions (ACTU) has repeatedly warned about the potential for lowered standards due to the lack of harmonized licensing across jurisdictions.
The Victorian government’s recent closure of its Overseas Qualification Unit further complicates the situation, leaving a gap in the assessment of foreign credentials. A Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions spokesperson indicated that the future of the unit remains under review.
A spokesperson for the federal Health Department affirmed that trans-Tasman mutual recognition remains a “legitimate pathway” but stated that national boards “regularly review these pathways to ensure they remain effective, and that public safety is not compromised.” However, the evidence suggests that the current system is vulnerable to abuse, potentially compromising professional standards and exacerbating healthcare inequities in the Pacific region.
