“We’re aligning the exemptions process to the national interest test for occupations developed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), as part of the Immigration Rebalance work,” said TEC Deputy Chief Executive Gillian Dudgeon.

“We’ve held three workshops with the WDCs, with more planned. Over the next few months, WDCs will develop advice to the TEC of the skills and training gaps for non-domestic learners who meet the immigration test and who should receive funding subsidies. We will then share the draft process with the sector for feedback in September.”

Final information and guidance will be released to the sector in November for application from 1 January 2023. There is further information on the TEC website about the process being followed and the timeframes involved.