Short answer: an Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) job must pay at least the New Zealand market rate for that job, and meet other legal wage requirements such as the minimum wage. It does not have to pay the median wage.
The median wage of NZ$35.00 an hour still matters, though. It decides whether an AEWV holder can bring their partner and children, whether a job counts for the Skilled Migrant Category, and the pay needed for Green List and work to residence visas. Most confusion about "the AEWV wage threshold" comes from mixing these up.
The Median Wage Used by INZ
| Period | Median wage (hourly) |
|---|---|
| From 9 March 2026 (current) | NZ$35.00 |
| 18 August 2025 to 8 March 2026 | NZ$33.56 |
| 28 February 2024 to 17 August 2025 | NZ$31.61 |
INZ updates the median wage each year, based on Stats NZ income data, and thresholds tied to it move at the same time. Several rules use the threshold that applied when something started, such as when you began gaining work experience. So older rates can still apply to you. See the median wage explained.
What an AEWV Job Must Pay
For the AEWV and its job check, the pay must be:
- at least the market rate for the job, and
- legal, meaning at least the minimum wage and any other legal pay requirements. See current rates at employment.govt.nz.
The market rate is the range of pay a New Zealander or resident would be paid for the same or equivalent work. INZ's own example is a range of NZ$27 to NZ$30 an hour. Employers should be ready to show how they set the rate, for example with pay data for the role, collective agreements or what they pay New Zealand staff in the same job.
INZ approves a pay range at the job check stage. The actual pay on the visa is confirmed when the worker applies. If an employer has to raise an offer above the range they advertised, they may need to re-advertise and submit a new job check.
Where the NZ$35 Median Wage Still Applies
1. Bringing your partner (Partner of a Worker Work Visa)
| Your AEWV job | You must earn at least |
|---|---|
| ANZSCO skill level 1, 2 or 3 | NZ$28 an hour (80% of the median wage) |
| Level 4 or 5, care workforce or transport sector agreement | NZ$28 an hour or the sector agreement wage, whichever is higher |
| Level 4 or 5, other jobs | NZ$52.50 an hour (150%), or NZ$35 in a Green List job |
| Level 4 or 5, already supporting your partner on 26 June 2024 | NZ$26.85 an hour |
There's no income requirement if you hold a different, eligible work visa. Full rules are in our partnership work visa guide.
2. Skilled Migrant Category (SMC)
To claim skilled employment for the SMC, your job must meet the SMC wage threshold. From 9 March 2026:
| Your job | SMC wage threshold |
|---|---|
| ANZSCO skill level 1–3 | NZ$35.00 an hour |
| ANZSCO skill level 4, 5 or unlisted | NZ$52.50 an hour (1.5 times) |
| Claiming 6 points for income | NZ$105.00 an hour (3 times) |
If your pathway needs New Zealand work experience, your threshold is the one in place when you started gaining that experience. It doesn't rise afterwards. If you weren't paid enough at the start, your experience only starts counting from when your pay meets the threshold in place at that time. See the Skilled Migrant Category guide.
3. Green List Straight to Residence
Green List Tier 1 jobs without their own pay rule must pay at least NZ$35.00 an hour. Some roles have higher, role-specific rates from 9 March 2026, for example:
| Job | Required rate |
|---|---|
| ICT, electronics and telecommunications | NZ$72.80 (208% of median) |
| Database or systems administrator | NZ$70.00 (200%) |
| Multimedia specialist | NZ$57.75 (165%) |
| External or internal auditor | NZ$45.50 (130%) |
4. Work to Residence visas
Green List Tier 2 jobs need 24 months' work within the last 30 months at the required rate. Most require the median wage, and some trades require more:
| Rate from 9 March 2026 | Example jobs |
|---|---|
| NZ$35.00 (median) | Most Tier 2 jobs |
| NZ$40.25 (115%) | Telecommunications technician, civil machinery operator, panel beater, vehicle painter |
| NZ$45.50 (130%) | Welder, fitter, fitter and turner, metal fabricator, crane operator |
| NZ$52.50 (150%) | Building associate |
The Care Workforce Work to Residence Visa uses the care sector rate of NZ$28.25 an hour. The Transport Work to Residence Visa uses the median wage, or the bus driver rate where that applies. For both, you use the rate that applied when your 24 months of work experience started. A 5-month grace period can apply if the rate rose between your visa being granted and you starting work.
How INZ Calculates the Hourly Rate
INZ works out the guaranteed pay for each hour in a pay period, including paid leave. The method depends on how the job is paid:
- Hourly rate: the rate itself. NZ$25.50 an hour counts as NZ$25.50.
- Different rate for overtime or weekends: the lowest hourly rate, unless the extra hours and pay are guaranteed, in which case they can be averaged within the pay period.
- Salary for set hours: salary ÷ 52 ÷ weekly hours. NZ$53,040 for 40 hours a week = NZ$25.50.
- Salary for a range of hours: divided by the maximum hours. NZ$59,670 for 40–45 hours a week = NZ$59,670 ÷ 52 ÷ 45 = NZ$25.50.
- Salary where hours change through the year: the lowest resulting hourly rate. NZ$99,840 a year with some 64-hour weeks = NZ$30.00.
- Piece rates, commissions and performance pay: not counted, unless the agreement guarantees a top-up to at least the market rate.
Part-time roles are assessed on the hourly rate, not total weekly earnings. A job's weekly hours affect other AEWV rules, but a lower number of hours doesn't lower the rate the job must pay.
Common Mistakes
- Treating NZ$35 as the AEWV pass mark. A job check is assessed against the market rate. Paying NZ$35 doesn't help if the market rate for the role is higher. Paying less than NZ$35 is fine for the AEWV itself if it meets the market rate, but it may stop the worker from bringing family or qualifying for residence later.
- Quoting a salary without maximum hours. If hours are a range, INZ uses the top of the range, which lowers the hourly rate.
- Counting overtime that isn't guaranteed. Only guaranteed hours and pay can be averaged in.
- Forgetting the family and residence goals. A worker who plans to bring a partner, or to apply for SMC or Green List residence, needs pay that meets those thresholds, often from day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did the AEWV median wage requirement get removed?
Yes. The AEWV now requires the market rate and legal pay rather than the median wage. The median wage still sets the thresholds for supporting family visas, the SMC and residence pathways.
My employer pays NZ$31 an hour for a skill level 2 job. What does that mean for me?
If NZ$31 is within the market rate for the role, the job can support an AEWV. You could support a partner work visa, because NZ$31 is above NZ$28. It is below the NZ$35.00 SMC threshold, though, so that work wouldn't count as skilled employment for the SMC until your pay reaches the threshold in place at that time.
If the median wage goes up, does my existing job check or visa fail?
No. An approved job check and a granted visa aren't cancelled by a later median wage increase. But new applications, such as a partner's visa, another AEWV or a residence application, may be assessed against the newer rate unless a rule fixes the older one.
Does the employer's cost or my take-home pay count?
INZ looks at the average guaranteed pay for each hour of work in a pay period under the employment agreement, including paid leave. Pay that isn't guaranteed, such as piece rates, commissions or non-guaranteed overtime, isn't counted.
Pay rules decide more than whether you get the visa. They also decide whether your family can join you and whether you can stay. Get matched with a licensed immigration adviser to check an offer before you accept it.
Sources: Immigration New Zealand pages on wage rates for work visas, how pay rates are calculated for the AEWV, the SMC wage threshold, work to residence wage rates and the Partner of a Worker Work Visa, checked 7 October 2026.