Working holiday changes a positive move

Working Holiday Scheme improvements taking effect in July will make New Zealand even more attractive for young people from overseas, says Immigration Minister Dr Jonathan Coleman.

Currently working holiday visa holders can study one course within a three month period. From July, the restriction to a single course of study for working holiday visa holders will be removed. In addition, New Zealand can negotiate on a country-by-country basis for the study entitlement to increase from three months to six months.

"Working holiday schemes are a great way of encouraging young people to visit New Zealand. They raise New Zealand's profile and, in foreign policy terms, signify a strong bilateral relationship," Dr Coleman says.

New Zealand has schemes with 30 countries, which generally entitle 18-30-year-olds to holiday and do incidental work here for up to a year (two years for UK citizens).

"Total expenditure of working holiday makers was last year estimated to be around $103 million. That is a huge contribution to our economy," says Dr Coleman.

"The changes will make it even easier for young people from overseas to study a range of short courses with the same or different providers, while they also sample New Zealand life.

"This will make our Working Holiday Scheme study entitlements more competitive with countries like Australia and Canada," Dr Coleman says.