For your work experience to be recognised, it must be relevant to your recognised qualification or relevant to your offer of skilled employment (or current skilled employment) in New Zealand. Or, you can show us that your work experience is skilled because it required, or enabled you to gain, specialist, technical or management skills and experience relevant to an occupation that is included in the lists of occupations held at Appendix 11 or Appendix 12 of the Operational Manual.
You can gain bonus points if you have work experience lawfully gained in New Zealand or that was in an identified future growth area or area of absolute skill shortage (see links below for definitions of these terms).
If you do not have current skilled employment or an offer of skilled employment in New Zealand, your work experience must have been gained in a comparable labour market in order for you to claim points.
Work experience points may also be awarded for work experience in an area of absolute skills shortage, gained in any labour market. Applicants who do not have skilled employment or an offer of skilled employment in New Zealand, but who do have work experience in an area of absolute skills shortage gained in a non-comparable labour market, can claim points for work experience on their Expression of Interest.