The Minister for Immigration, Michael Woodhouse, today announced immediate changes to immigration. There will be a 5% cut in the numbers of immigrants who have residency. Skilled migrants will now need 160 points instead of 140. There will be cuts to the family category. Only 2,000 instead of the present 5,500 will be allowed and there is now a temporary ban on granting residency to parents of adult migrants.
Immigrant numbers have reached a record 100,000 this year and most of these people want to live in Auckland. Auckland already has a housing shortage and politicians from New Zealand First and the Labour Party have been calling for cuts in immigration.
Student visa numbers are down slightly; however, visas for Indian students are down 23% after it was discovered that many had fake financial information.
Changes to immigration are not unusual.
Vocabulary
• resident (n) – a person who lives in a place; residency (n) – a status, a right to live in a place
• ban (n) – forbidden, not allowed
• to grant (v) – to give permission
• shortage (n) – not enough
• fake (adj) – false, not genuine