Job hunting on a Post Study Work Visa: the timeline, the conditions and what employers worry about

When to apply, and why you only get one

Immigration New Zealand's rule is short: apply for a Post-Study Work Visa no later than three months after your student visa expires. There are a few exceptions. If you completed a doctoral degree, you have six months, and you can apply as soon as you submit your thesis. If you went straight from an eligible qualification into a higher one that took less than 30 weeks, you can apply on the first qualification within 12 months of that first student visa ending.

You can only ever hold one Post-Study Work Visa. Whatever you study later, at the same level or higher, will not give you a second. So the time it gives you is worth planning before it starts.

To apply you need your qualification (or a transcript or letter from your provider), at least NZD $5,000 for living expenses, shown in bank statements in your name, and the usual health and character checks. The fee starts at NZD $1,670, and Immigration New Zealand says 80% of applications are decided within six weeks. You must stay on a valid visa the whole time: if your student visa runs out while you wait, you are normally given an Interim Visa.

Which jobs the visa lets you do

What you can do depends on what you studied.

• A degree at level 7 or higher, studied full-time for at least 30 weeks in New Zealand, lets you do any legal work, in any job, for any employer, anywhere in New Zealand, as long as you hold any registration the occupation needs. You can be a sole trader or own a business, but you cannot employ anyone.
• A non-degree qualification at level 7 or below must be on Immigration New Zealand's list of eligible qualifications, studied full-time here for its full length. The job you take must relate to what you studied, and that is written into your visa conditions.

The length depends on the level. A master's or doctoral degree, with at least 30 weeks of study here, gives three years. A qualification at level 8 or below gives a visa as long as the time you spent studying it, as confirmed by your provider; failing a paper or taking longer does not stretch it. A Post-Study Work Visa also lets your partner apply for a work visa, and your dependent children can study as domestic students.

The new options from 16 November 2026

Immigration New Zealand announced two changes, both starting on Monday 16 November 2026.

The Short-Term Graduate Work Visa gives six months of open work rights, so a graduate has time to look for work and, where it fits, move to an Accredited Employer Work Visa. It is for a qualification at NZQCF level 5 to 7, studied full-time for at least 24 weeks in New Zealand, that does not qualify you for a Post-Study Work Visa and is not an English language, foundation or bridging qualification. You apply within three months of your student visa expiring, with at least NZD $5,000 to support yourself. The limits matter:

• the work must be for an employer, under an employment agreement or a contract for services, and you cannot own a business;
• it cannot support a work visa for your partner or a student visa for your children as dependants;
• you can hold it once, it cannot be extended, and you cannot get it if you have ever held a Post-Study Work Visa.

Graduate diplomas. From the same date, an NZQCF level 7 graduate diploma, studied full-time in New Zealand for its full length, qualifies for a Post-Study Work Visa if you also hold a bachelor's degree from New Zealand or overseas. The visa runs for as long as you studied the diploma here, up to one year, with open work conditions. Without a bachelor's degree, a graduate diploma on the Green List gives a visa tied to that occupation, and otherwise the Short-Term Graduate Work Visa is the route.

Start in your final semester

Six months, a year or even three years goes quickly if the first months are spent getting ready. Start in your final semester, while you still have a student visa, the careers service and a timetable you control. A 12-week plan:

• Weeks 1 to 2: work out which visa you will qualify for, its length and whether it is open or tied to your field. Draft a CV for New Zealand employers and a list of 30 to 40 target employers.
• Weeks 3 to 6: apply to graduate programmes and advertised roles on Seek, LinkedIn, Indeed and employers' careers pages, and ask lecturers and past employers to be referees.
• Weeks 7 to 10: follow up every application after a week or two, go to careers fairs and industry events, and practise interviews with the careers service.
• Weeks 11 to 12: once your qualification is confirmed, gather your documents and apply for the visa, no later than three months after your student visa ends.

An employer who cannot tell whether you can legally work may simply move on to the next CV, so say it on yours, under your contact details, in one line. For example: "Work rights: Post-Study Work Visa, open work rights, valid to March 2029." Before the visa is granted, write "Eligible for a Post-Study Work Visa (open work rights) on completing my degree in November 2026." Employers must check your right to work before you start, through Immigration New Zealand's VisaView service or by seeing your visa, so be ready to share your eVisa.

Your Job Hunt keeps every application on one board, saved from Seek, LinkedIn, Indeed or a careers page in one press, with a follow-up reminder for each. Add your visa's expiry date in Settings and the dashboard warns you once 90 days or fewer are left. Visa mode, part of On the Move, adds a work rights box to each job for recording whether the employer is listed as accredited. Our guide to getting a job in New Zealand as a migrant covers CVs, references and interviews in a New Zealand workplace.

Moving on to an Accredited Employer Work Visa

A Post-Study Work Visa or a Short-Term Graduate Work Visa is time-limited. For most graduates who want to stay longer, the next step is an Accredited Employer Work Visa, which needs a full-time offer of at least 30 hours a week from an accredited employer, who sends you the link to apply. It can run for up to five years depending on the job, its skill level and the pay, and the fee starts at NZD $1,540. It links you to that employer, so changing jobs later means changing your visa conditions or applying again.

That makes accreditation worth checking early. While your post-study visa lets you work anywhere, you can take any job, but a job with an accredited employer is one that can carry you onto an Accredited Employer Work Visa without changing employer. Employers and agents cannot charge you a fee for a job. Our article on finding an accredited employer shows how to check Immigration New Zealand's list and what to ask before you accept.

Keep the visa clock and the hunt together