Checking an SMC job offer: accreditation, guaranteed hours and contract type
An SMC job or offer must satisfy SR 3.15 and the selected pathway, not merely name an accredited employer. Ordinary employment requires at least 30 guaranteed hours each working week, a permanent role or fixed term of at least 12 months, and accreditation that is not suspended at the prescribed assessment point. The job's genuineness and the applicant's position need their own checks.
Identify the actual employing legal entity
The agreement and job description must identify the applicant, employer's legal entity, occupation, hours and remuneration. A brand, group and payroll company may differ. Match the real entity to the accreditation rather than relying on a brand brochure. SR 3.15 addresses the specified accreditation position when residence is made or decided; a historic screenshot does not settle the current facts.
Accreditation also does not grant the applicant a work visa or entry right. An offer, residence intention and permission to begin work are separate stages. Provide actual employer records and the contract for assessment instead of asking an adviser to infer everything from a vacancy advertisement.
Ordinary employment check | Requirement direction |
Full-time | At least 30 guaranteed hours each working week |
Term | Permanent or a fixed term of at least 12 months |
Employer | Accreditation, not suspended, at the prescribed point |
Genuineness | A real job, not an offer resulting from payment for a position |
Pathway | The relevant occupation and wage conditions as well |
The title must reflect real duties
INZ assesses the employment against the specific ANZSCO occupational description and may assess substantial matching and whether the applicant is suitably qualified. Renaming ordinary duties as a higher-skilled position does not establish that match. A translation should not upgrade the role. Explain the actual work and the background it requires.
Relevant qualifications, experience or registration must support the job under the instructions. A qualification scoring points is not necessarily suitable for every role. Regulated work's registration requirement also differs from claiming registration skill points. Establish each purpose rather than treating one document as the answer to all of them.
Contracts for services have their own conditions
SR 3.15 permits consideration of contracts for services with at least 12 months of eligible New Zealand skilled experience, a consistent contracting history, current contracts totalling at least six months and specialist satisfaction that the work is likely to continue. Do not apply the ordinary fixed-term employment rule indiscriminately to every service contract.
Nor should a genuine contracting arrangement simply be relabelled employment, or an enquiry described as a signed engagement. A six-point skill claim with services contracts also has the SR 3.25.25 requirement for a year of qualifying experience in the prior two years. Assess the actual activity, documents and history together, not just the heading.
Pay must fit the pathway and relevant dates
The points, Skilled Work Experience and Trades and Technician pathways have different occupation and wage conditions. Threshold timing and multipliers also matter. Meeting one basic amount does not automatically award income points or establish every historical period. Guaranteed hours, remuneration and genuine pay evidence should be consistent.
The offer must be genuine and not result from buying a position. Ordinary professional document-service fees and a job-purchase arrangement are different purposes and should be described accurately. No party should invent a role, work or outcome. A preliminary private assessment is not government acceptance.
Update the record when the employer, hours, pay or duties change. Preserve the real dates and earlier and current contracts, then assess the EOI and pathway implications. The original advertisement does not establish all later employment. Invitation deadlines and policy transitions still apply; an acceptable offer addresses one part of residence eligibility, not a guaranteed approval.
Official sources and verification date
18 October 2026
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