From 9 March 2026, Immigration New Zealand increased the median wage to $35.00 an hour. Many visa and residence settings are linked to it, so a change to the wage can affect whether someone still meets the requirements.
The median wage went from $33.56 to $35.00 an hour on 9 March 2026. It's based on Stats NZ June-quarter data from the previous year and updates once a year. The reason it matters is that a lot of visa and residence settings are calculated as multiples of it - so when the median wage moves, all those thresholds move with it.
The general median wage requirement for a standard AEWV role was removed back in March 2025, so the AEWV to get someone here is largely off the median wage now. But the settings that keep their family here and move them toward residence are still very much based on it. Because different categories use different multipliers - 1x, 1.1x, 1.2x, 1.5x, 2x etc - the impact depends on each person's role, pay and pathway.
Which settings this moves
The categories most likely to affect your people, with the new rates:
Partner support (skill level 1-3 roles): now requires your employee to be paid at least $28.00/hour - 80% of the median wage.
Higher-paid Job Check exemptions: now $70.00/hour - 2x the median wage.
Skilled Migrant Category and Work to Residence: wage thresholds based on the median wage, so anyone on a residence pathway is affected.
Maximum continuous stay rules for certain roles paid at 1.5x the median wage.
So a change from $33.56 to $35.00 doesn't just nudge one number - it flows through to partner support, residence pathways, stay rules and exemptions all at once.
What employers should do
Check whether any current staff or planned hires are close to a wage threshold. Review whether a pay adjustment is needed to protect visa eligibility. Make sure job titles, duties, hours and pay match across employment agreements, Job Checks and advertising. And if you employ migrant workers or are planning AEWV renewals, it's a sensible point to look at your workforce as a whole rather than role by role.
The one that catches employers most often is dependent family support. A worker sitting just above last year's threshold can drop just below the new one, and the first anyone notices is when the partner's visa is up for renewal, or their employee wants to bring dependent children.
What employees should do
If you are a worker on a visa, this change may affect your visa extension or residence plans. You should consider getting advice early if your pay is close to a median wage threshold, you are planning a visa extension or residence application, or you want to understand your residence options.
If you want to know how this impacts, get in touch and we'll flag where the new rate changes something.
