Open Work Visas in New Zealand: What They Actually Allow
An open work visa lets you work for any employer, in any job, anywhere in New Zealand. From 20 April 2026 it no longer lets you work for yourself: holders must work under an employment agreement or a contract for services, and cannot sole-trade, own or operate a business, or employ others. Existing holders are grandfathered until their visa expires.
Quick Facts
| What "open" means | Any employer, any job, any location in New Zealand |
| What it no longer means | From 20 April 2026: no sole trading, no owning or operating a business, no employing others |
| The requirement | Work must be under an employment agreement or a contract for services |
| Existing holders | Grandfathered until their visa expires |
| Who is covered | Open work visa holders, including Working Holiday Visa holders |
| Main open work visas | Partner of a Worker · Partner of a New Zealander · Post Study Work Visa (Level 7 degree or higher) · Working Holiday |
| Not open | The Accredited Employer Work Visa — one employer, one job, one location |
| Partner of a Worker | Granted without work conditions since 2 December 2024 |
| Post Study Work Visa | Open at Level 7 degree or higher; restricted below degree level |
What "open work rights" actually means
An open work visa does not tie you to a named employer. You can take a job, leave it, take another, work in a different city, and work in a different industry, without applying to INZ each time.
That is the exception in New Zealand's system, not the rule. The country's main work visa — the Accredited Employer Work Visa — is a closed visa. It authorises work only in the job, for the employer, and at the location stated on it. Changing any of those requires a variation of conditions, a job change application, or a new visa.
Open work rights are granted for a reason: usually because the visa exists to support someone else's status (a partner), or to let a recent graduate find their footing in the labour market, or as part of a reciprocal youth mobility arrangement.
The 20 April 2026 change
This is the most significant change to open work visas in years, and it is under-reported.
From 20 April 2026, open work visa holders must work under an employment agreement or a contract for services. They cannot:
- Sole-trade
- Own or operate a business
- Employ others
Existing holders are grandfathered until their visa expires. The restriction applies to visas from that date forward, not retrospectively to visas already held.
Working Holiday Visa holders are covered by the same restriction — see working holiday visa self-employment rules and the policy note on the business ownership ban.
What the distinction means
The rule draws a line between working for someone and working for yourself.
| Permitted | Not permitted |
|---|---|
| Employment under an employment agreement | Operating as a sole trader |
| Engagement under a contract for services | Owning or operating a business |
| Working for multiple employers | Employing staff |
A "contract for services" is the standard New Zealand term for genuine contracting — you provide services to a client under a contract, rather than being their employee. That remains available. What is not available is building the arrangement into a business of your own with its own trading identity, or hiring anyone.
Where a particular arrangement sits on that line is a question about your circumstances, and it is one for a licensed immigration adviser or a New Zealand lawyer — not for a website and not for an accountant who does not hold an immigration licence.
Which New Zealand visas carry open work rights
| Visa | Work rights | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Partner of a Worker Work Visa | Open | Granted without work conditions since 2 December 2024. Cannot provide commercial sexual services or employ others |
| Partner of a New Zealander Work Visa | Open | Supporting partner is a NZ citizen or resident |
| Post Study Work Visa — Level 7 degree or higher | Open | No job offer needed |
| Post Study Work Visa — below degree level | Restricted | Work must relate to the qualification |
| Working Holiday Visa | Open, with scheme-specific limits | Some schemes cap time with one employer |
| Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visa | Exists as a separate protective product | Applicants and their family are exempt from the immigration levy |
| Accredited Employer Work Visa | Closed | One employer, one job, one location |
| Specific Purpose Work Visa | Closed | Limited to the job, employer and location on the visa |
| RSE Limited Visa | Closed | Work limited to the employers named on the visa |
For a fuller map across every category, see work rights by visa type.
Partner of a Worker Work Visa
The largest source of open work rights for people already in New Zealand. It gives "any work, in any job, anywhere in New Zealand" — INZ's own wording — excluding commercial sexual services and employing others.
- From NZ$1,630 = NZ$570 partnership work visa fee + NZ$1,060 immigration levy
- 80% decided within 4.5 weeks
- Lasts as long as the supporting partner's eligible work visa
- Does not lead to residence on its own
Eligibility depends on what the supporting partner earns and what job they hold, with thresholds of NZ$28.00, NZ$35.00 or NZ$52.50 an hour depending on the role. Full detail in the Partner of a Worker Work Visa explained.
Post Study Work Visa
The split here catches graduates out, and it is a genuine two-tier system.
- Level 7 degree or higher — open work rights. You can work for any employer in any role, with no job offer needed.
- Below degree level — work is restricted to employment related to your qualification.
The visa is priced from NZ$1,670 and requires at least NZ$5,000 in documented funds. Note the fee structure: a small application fee against a very large immigration levy, which is how INZ prices settlement-pathway products.
Eligibility widens on 16 November 2026, when the Post Study Work Visa expands to Level 7 graduate diplomas and bachelor's degrees. Two cautions: the exact duration-per-qualification-level mapping was not verified, so do not rely on a 1/2/3-year table from any source without checking it; and there is no separately named "Short-term Graduate Work Visa" — that name circulates online but does not appear in INZ's own visa list. See post-study work visa eligibility changes.
Working Holiday Visas
Working Holiday Visa holders have broad work rights, subject to scheme-specific rules — some schemes limit how long you may work for one employer, and the durations, ages and caps differ by country across 45 schemes. All of them are first come, first served, opening at 10:00 New Zealand time on a published date.
- Fee: NZ$770 = NZ$215 visa fee + NZ$455 immigration levy + NZ$100 IVL
- 80% decided within 1.5 weeks; four days average
- The 20 April 2026 self-employment restriction applies
See the working holiday visa explained and schemes by country.
What open work rights do not include
They are not residence. An open work visa is temporary. It expires. Most carry no residence pathway of their own.
They are not unlimited. Every open work visa still has an expiry date, and most have conditions beyond work — study limits, travel conditions, and the exclusions above.
They do not cover self-employment from 20 April 2026. This is worth repeating because the older understanding of "open" is still the one most guides describe.
They do not remove employment law. An open work visa holder is an employee or a contractor like anyone else, with the same minimum entitlements. Employers who breach obligations, including passing recruitment costs to workers, are breaching accreditation obligations as well as employment law.
Can you get an open work visa without a partner or a New Zealand qualification?
Mostly, no. The routes to open work rights in New Zealand are narrow and each has a gateway: a relationship, a New Zealand qualification, a nationality-specific youth mobility scheme, or a protective category.
There is no general open work visa you can apply for on merit, and no job seeker visa. Working in New Zealand without a job offer sets out what genuinely exists.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an open work visa in New Zealand?
A work visa that lets you work for any employer, in any job, anywhere in New Zealand, rather than being tied to a named employer. From 20 April 2026, holders must work under an employment agreement or a contract for services and cannot sole-trade, own or operate a business, or employ others.
Can I be self-employed on a work visa in New Zealand?
Not on an open work visa granted from 20 April 2026 onward. Holders must work under an employment agreement or a contract for services, and cannot sole-trade, own or operate a business, or employ others. Existing holders are grandfathered until their visa expires. The Accredited Employer Work Visa never permitted self-employment — the job offer supporting it cannot be for self-employed work.
Does the 20 April 2026 rule apply to me if my visa was granted earlier?
Existing holders are grandfathered until their visa expires. What happens when you apply for a new visa after that date is governed by the rules in force then.
Which New Zealand visas have open work rights?
The main ones are the Partner of a Worker Work Visa, the Partner of a New Zealander Work Visa, the Post Study Work Visa at Level 7 degree or higher, and Working Holiday Visas. The Accredited Employer Work Visa, the Specific Purpose Work Visa and the RSE Limited Visa are all closed.
Do Post Study Work Visa holders have open work rights?
Holders with a Level 7 degree or higher do. Below degree level, work is restricted to employment related to the qualification.
Can I employ someone on an open work visa?
No. Employing others is excluded, both by the Partner of a Worker Work Visa conditions and by the 20 April 2026 rule that applies to open work visa holders generally.
Can I work as a contractor on an open work visa?
Working under a contract for services is expressly within what the 20 April 2026 rule permits. Setting yourself up as a sole trader or a business is not. Where a specific arrangement falls is a question about your circumstances, and needs advice from someone licensed to give it.
Is the Accredited Employer Work Visa an open work visa?
No. It is closed — it authorises work only in the job, for the employer, and at the location stated on the visa. See AEWV conditions and restrictions.
