If Your Accreditation or Job Check Is Declined
Reconsideration of a declined employer accreditation costs NZ$250. Reconsideration of a declined Job Check also costs NZ$250. A different immigration officer reviews the decision. Reconsideration fixes a decision believed to be wrong — it does not fix advertising that was too short or evidence that was never provided. Fees are not refunded on a decline.
Quick Facts
| Reconsideration of an accreditation decision | NZ$250 |
| Reconsideration of a Job Check decision | NZ$250 |
| Reconsideration of a declined temporary visa | A separate process, NZ$220 — this is the migrant's route, not the employer's |
| Who applies | The employer, for accreditation and Job Check decisions |
| Deadline | Short, and it runs from the decision — confirm it from your decline letter |
| Refunds | INZ does not refund fees or levies when an application is declined |
| Reapplying | Full fee again — NZ$775, NZ$1,280, NZ$4,060 or NZ$735 |
| Appeal to a tribunal | Not available for these employer decisions |
Three different processes, often confused
| Decision declined | Route | Fee | Who applies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employer accreditation | Reconsideration | NZ$250 | Employer |
| Job Check | Reconsideration | NZ$250 | Employer |
| A temporary visa, including the AEWV | Reconsideration of a declined temporary visa | NZ$220 | The migrant |
The third is a different process with a different fee and different eligibility rules, and it belongs to the visa applicant rather than the employer. See reconsideration of a declined temporary visa.
None of the three is an appeal to a tribunal. In New Zealand, the Immigration and Protection Tribunal hears residence class visa decisions, refugee and protection matters, and deportation — not employer accreditation or Job Check decisions. See reconsideration vs IPT appeal vs section 61.
The deadline — read your decline letter first
There is a deadline for requesting reconsideration and it is short. It runs from the decision, not from when you get round to reading it.
We are not going to publish a day count. Deadlines of this kind are the sort of fact that causes real harm if it is wrong by a day, and a reader who missed a statutory deadline because a website was confident would have no remedy. The deadline that binds you is the one stated in your decline letter and in INZ's current instructions. Read the letter, note the date, and confirm it with INZ before you plan anything else.
Everything else on this page assumes you have done that first.
What reconsideration is — and is not
A different immigration officer reviews the decision. They either overturn it, if the first decision was not correctly made, or maintain it.
It is a review of the decision, not a second attempt at the application. That distinction decides whether it is worth NZ$250:
| Reconsideration can help where | Reconsideration will not help where |
|---|---|
| The officer misread evidence that was in front of them | The advertising period was genuinely too short |
| A criterion was applied incorrectly | Evidence was never provided |
| Documents were on file but overlooked | A disqualifier genuinely applies |
| The reasoning does not match the published rules | The role was genuinely miscoded and needs reworking |
Where the decline was factually correct, a fresh application is usually the honest route — even though it costs the full fee again.
Why employer accreditation gets declined
Accreditation turns on two gates, and a decline is almost always one of them.
Failing the financial viability test. The employer must meet one of four: no loss before depreciation and tax in the last two years; positive cash flow in each of the last six months; sufficient capital or external investment; or a credible two-year business plan. Failing all four disqualifies the application.
The commonest version of this is not a failing business — it is an employer who chose a test they could not evidence. Test 2 is monthly and unforgiving: one negative month breaks it. Test 4 turns on the plan being credible, which means assumptions traceable to something outside the plan.
Hitting a disqualifier. Any of these ends it: being on the employer stand-down list, being on the immigration stand-down list, being permanently banned from hiring migrants, or being bankrupt or under a No Asset Procedure.
Neither category is usually fixable by reconsideration. A disqualifier either applies or it does not; a viability test either was evidenced or it was not. See employer accreditation requirements.
Why Job Checks get declined
More Job Checks fail on process than on substance, and the process failures are the ones reconsideration cannot rescue.
Advertising that did not meet the requirement. Advertising for less than 14 days for skill level 1–3, or 21 days for skill level 4–5, fails the Job Check requirement. Thirteen days is not nearly enough — it is a failed test. Other common advertising problems: the wrong kind of platform, an advertisement missing the pay range or the guaranteed hours, or multi-location work not advertised in each location.
Missing the 90-day window. A Job Check must be applied for within 90 days of the job advertisement closing. After that, the advertising has to be run again from scratch.
Skill level miscoding. Applying at skill level 1–3 for a job INZ assesses as level 4–5 can result in decline and re-application. This one compounds: level 4–5 roles need 21 days of advertising plus Work and Income engagement, so a role advertised for 14 days on a level 1–3 assumption has failed the labour market test as well as the classification. The fix is usually a rebuild, not a review.
Pay problems. Pay below the market rate for the occupation, pay below the adult minimum wage, pay not guaranteed — piece rates, commission and bonuses count only in addition to the hourly rate — or pay that does not match what was advertised.
The job itself. Fewer than 30 guaranteed hours a week, a role that does not stack up as genuine, or an employment agreement that does not match the application.
See advertising a job before a Job Check and the Job Check explained.
Reconsider, or reapply?
Cost is only part of it.
| Reconsideration | Fresh application | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | NZ$250 | NZ$775 / NZ$1,280 / NZ$4,060 (accreditation) or NZ$735 (Job Check) |
| What it does | Reviews the decision made | Starts again with new evidence |
| Good for | Errors in the decision | Gaps in the original application |
| New evidence | A review, not a second attempt | Fully available |
| Advertising | Cannot fix a short or defective campaign | Can be redone properly first |
The practical rule: if the fix involves doing something differently, it is a new application. If the fix involves someone reading what was already there, it is a reconsideration.
No refunds
INZ does not refund fees or levies when an application is declined. A declined NZ$775 accreditation and a declined NZ$735 Job Check are both spent.
That is the strongest argument for being decision-ready before submitting. Evidence for one viability test, properly assembled, beats thin evidence across four. Advertising that ran the full period on the right platform beats a fast campaign that has to be repeated. See NZ visa fee refunds explained.
What this means if you are the migrant
A declined accreditation or Job Check is not your application, and you cannot request reconsideration of it. But it is your visa that does not now exist.
Five things worth knowing:
- There is nothing for you to file. Without an approved Job Check there is no job token and no AEWV application.
- The employer decides what happens next. Reconsideration, a fresh application, or nothing at all.
- The timeline is longer than "we'll fix it". A fresh Job Check after failed advertising means 14 or 21 days of advertising, then lodgement within 90 days, then processing.
- Do not pay anyone to fix it. Employer applications are employer costs, and paying an employer or agent for a job offer causes INZ to decline the resulting AEWV.
- Ask specifically what was declined and why. "The Job Check was declined" and "the accreditation was declined" are very different problems.
If your own AEWV is declined later, that is a different process again — see AEWV declined: common reasons.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does reconsideration of a Job Check cost?
NZ$250. Reconsideration of a declined employer accreditation also costs NZ$250. Reconsideration of a declined temporary visa is a separate process at NZ$220 and belongs to the visa applicant, not the employer.
How long do I have to request reconsideration?
There is a short deadline running from the decision. We do not publish a day count for it, because a wrong figure would cause real harm — confirm the deadline from your decline letter and from INZ's current instructions before doing anything else.
Can an employer appeal an accreditation decline to a tribunal?
No. There is no tribunal appeal for employer accreditation or Job Check decisions. The routes are internal reconsideration at NZ$250, or a fresh application at full fee.
Why do Job Checks get declined in New Zealand?
Most often on process: advertising shorter than 14 days for skill level 1 to 3 roles or 21 days for level 4 to 5, an advertisement missing required content, lodging more than 90 days after the ad closed, or skill level miscoding. Pay below the market rate and jobs under 30 guaranteed hours a week are the other common causes.
Will INZ refund the fee if my accreditation is declined?
No. INZ does not refund fees or levies when an application is declined, so a declined NZ$775 accreditation or NZ$735 Job Check is spent.
Is it better to request reconsideration or apply again?
Reconsideration reviews the decision that was made; a fresh application lets you fix the underlying problem. If the fix requires doing something differently — readvertising, recoding the role, producing evidence that was never filed — a fresh application is generally the route that can actually work.
What happens to my visa application if the employer's Job Check is declined?
There is no application. The AEWV depends on a job token from an approved Job Check, so until the employer resolves the decline or files a successful new Job Check, there is nothing for you to lodge.
General information only. This page explains published Immigration New Zealand process. It does not assess anyone's application, does not advise whether to seek reconsideration or reapply, and is not immigration advice under the Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007. Confirm your own deadline from your decline letter and from INZ. Fees as published 20 August 2026.
