Hi
Sorry if this has already been asked, but I’m moving to New Zealand next month and will be looking to transfer my Class 1 to a NZ class 5, my understanding is that I need to have a medical and then pass a multiple choice Class 5 theory test, is this still the case?.
Hi Graham,
This was still the case last January as i was over there , changed my class one for a class 5. Will need a medical and take multi choice test at any VTNZ testing station, there are 35 questions of which you will need 33 to pass. you can go through all the questions on line, so learn them off by heart. i also did a days course on log books which was useful.
There seems to be plenty of driving work , see the trade me nz website ,for jobs. I drove for linfox out of auckland but be aware the hours are long and most set ups are truck and trailer. if you’re going to the south island i’ve be told there is plenty of work in Christchurch.
good luck
bq
Are truckers still on the jobs list 
Trucker Rick:
Are truckers still on the jobs list
Hi
Not sure, I’ve managed to get a visa with my wife as she is a nurse.
Trucker Rick:
Are truckers still on the jobs list
Yes, partially.
Class5 is still on CSSL, in other words you can still get work permit in Canterbury
When it comes to changing license, all I had to do was theory test, that was about 1,5yrs ago
Im class 1.Im told driving has been removed from occupation list.And that you don’t have to do a theory test its olny people that come from countrys that carnt read English
Trucker Rick:
Im class 1.Im told driving has been removed from occupation list.And that you don’t have to do a theory test its olny people that come from countrys that carnt read English
Class5 IS still in CSSL-list, like I just recently wrote…
Transport Truck Driver (General) (733111) NZ recognised Full Class 4 or 5 Driver Licence
AND
a minimum of three years’ experience driving heavy rigid (gross laden weight of more than
18,000kg) or heavy combination (gross combined weight of more than 25,000kg) vehicles
You DO have to sit theory test if you wanna convert to NZ Class5 license
You do have to sit a theory test if:
you have a licence from a country not listed above, or
you are converting a heavy vehicle licence from any country.
prefix:
Trucker Rick:
Im class 1.Im told driving has been removed from occupation list.And that you don’t have to do a theory test its olny people that come from countrys that carnt read EnglishClass5 IS still in CSSL-list, like I just recently wrote…
Transport Truck Driver (General) (733111) NZ recognised Full Class 4 or 5 Driver Licence
AND
a minimum of three years’ experience driving heavy rigid (gross laden weight of more than
18,000kg) or heavy combination (gross combined weight of more than 25,000kg) vehiclesYou DO have to sit theory test if you wanna convert to NZ Class5 license
You do have to sit a theory test if:
you have a licence from a country not listed above, or
you are converting a heavy vehicle licence from any country.
Hi mate
How recent is this because im told this has been removed and when I look on the jobs list it was gone.Also a lot of truckers say they don’t now anyone that has successfully moved over to NZ because its not a trade.If I could emergrate on a permanent basis I would do it
My understanding is that HGV driver was removed from the NZ national skills shortage list back in about February 2014.
However, Canterbury has put HGV driver on their regional critical shortage list because they still have a lot of cleaning up and rebuilding to do after the earthquakes. Note, though, that I don’t think the Canterbury visa would lead to eligibility for permanent residency, it will only ever be temporary.
I am no expert, I may have got it wrong, but that is my current understanding. I remain hopeful that the NZ government might return HGV driver to their shortage list at some stage, as I am still seeing reports that their trucking industry is in trouble and local recruitment is not working to deliver enough drivers as the government intended.
According to the NZ immigration site trucking is now off the long term and immediate skills shortage lists however you can still apply for an Essential skills visa for Canterbury-see below
Of course if you are under 30 years of age you can apply for a working visa
TRUCK DRIVER (GENERAL) is on the following lists:
Canterbury skill shortage list click to collapse contents
GENERAL
Required standard
NZ recognised Full Class 4 or 5 Driver Licence
AND
a minimum of three years’ experience driving heavy rigid (gross laden weight of more than 18,000kg) or heavy combination (gross combined weight of more than 25,000kg) vehicles
Related visa: Essential Skills
If you meet the above requirements and have a job offer in the Canterbury region then you may be eligible to apply for an Essential Skills temporary work visa. The duration of the visa depends on the term of your job offer and labour market conditions. Essential Skills work visas are intended to fill temporary skill gaps, so they do not lead directly to a residence application (however many of the occupations are eligible for residence under the Skilled Migrant Category).
Banquo
What a bummer.If it comes back on the list I will be straight over
Class5 is still on the list, but only on the Canterbury list. So you can still get a work permit in here.
Another thing is that our occupation doesn’t take you any closer to residency but you never know, might end up with kiwi chick…
A lot of people reckon that class 5 is gonna go back on the skills list at some point
G’day fellas. I’m on a 12 month work visa in Christchurch. Been here in NZ nearly three years. Most of the that time was spent working in Auckland, then they took truck driving off the skills list so had to move down to Christchurch. There’s plenty of work here and to exchange your class 1 for a NZ class 5 is very easy, quick medical and a 35 question test on a computer, mostly common sense questions, easy, takes ten minutes. I’ve talked to the minister for immigration here and there are NO plans to put truck driving back on the shortage list NZ wide. You have to work in the Canterbury region which includes Christchurch.
It’s long hours and about equivalent pay to the UK. A lot of the work is truck and trailer which can be tricky to reverse. But practice makes perfect. They’re desperate for drivers in Christchurch, why not give it a go? After 25 years in London I’ll never leave NZ.
gorrington:
After 25 years in London I’ll never leave NZ.
How do you plan on staying? Isn’t the Christchurch situation temporary visa only with no route to Permanent Residency?
They’ll be re building Christchurch for a long time to come… You can get work to residency in some circumstances. The easiest way is just to hook up with a Kiwi woman . It’s the natural course of things really. You live anywhere and you meet a woman. Whether it be here or back in the UK.
Hi mate, only been down in Christchurch for three months myself. I’m looking for a new job myself. Was working for a demolition company, had a row with them on the last day before Christmas. Plenty of work about tho… Wages seem to be around the $24 an hour mark. Accommodation is expensive. I’m living about half an hours drive North of Christchurch, place called Rangiora. Renting a little one bed unit $300 a week all in.
As you will know, the Kiwis expect you to work up to the maximum hours allowed. DON’T work for a company called Rangiora Transport… I worked for them for a week… Mon - Fri I did 80hrs driving really ■■■■ old trucks for $21 flat rate an hour. Never again.
Christchurch itself is nowhere near as good as Auckland, I lived in Auckland for two years. Since the earthquakes there’s not much left of the centre of Christchurch, not really a lot of nightlife about. I like going out for a few beers, you end up drinking local.
I lived in London for 25 years prior to coming to NZ and for it’s few faults I’d still choose NZ over London any day…
Let me know how you’re getting on…
Simon.
gorrington:
Hi mate, only been down in Christchurch for three months myself. I’m looking for a new job myself. Was working for a demolition company, had a row with them on the last day before Christmas. Plenty of work about tho… Wages seem to be around the $24 an hour mark. Accommodation is expensive. I’m living about half an hours drive North of Christchurch, place called Rangiora. Renting a little one bed unit $300 a week all in.
As you will know, the Kiwis expect you to work up to the maximum hours allowed. DON’T work for a company called Rangiora Transport… I worked for them for a week… Mon - Fri I did 80hrs driving really [zb] old trucks for $21 flat rate an hour. Never again.
Christchurch itself is nowhere near as good as Auckland, I lived in Auckland for two years. Since the earthquakes there’s not much left of the centre of Christchurch, not really a lot of nightlife about. I like going out for a few beers, you end up drinking local.
I lived in London for 25 years prior to coming to NZ and for it’s few faults I’d still choose NZ over London any day…
Let me know how you’re getting on…
Simon.
At least you get paid by the hour, so you’re already a hundred years ahead of Canada in who’s the most Victorian in the employment condition league. If you earned 80 times $21NZD then thats 1680NZD which according to xe.com is 1521 Canadian dollars. I could easily do 80 of actual duty time here and come nowhere close to that due to mileage pay and while I do get pick and drop money and waiting time if all sorts of criteria are met, I wouldn’t be able to match your wage. That is bloody expensive for a one room flat though. What are the wages like in Auckland and other big cities compared to the cost of living?
gorrington:
Hi mate, only been down in Christchurch for three months myself. I’m looking for a new job myself. Was working for a demolition company, had a row with them on the last day before Christmas. Plenty of work about tho… Wages seem to be around the $24 an hour mark. Accommodation is expensive. I’m living about half an hours drive North of Christchurch, place called Rangiora. Renting a little one bed unit $300 a week all in.
As you will know, the Kiwis expect you to work up to the maximum hours allowed. DON’T work for a company called Rangiora Transport… I worked for them for a week… Mon - Fri I did 80hrs driving really [zb] old trucks for $21 flat rate an hour. Never again.
Christchurch itself is nowhere near as good as Auckland, I lived in Auckland for two years. Since the earthquakes there’s not much left of the centre of Christchurch, not really a lot of nightlife about. I like going out for a few beers, you end up drinking local.
I lived in London for 25 years prior to coming to NZ and for it’s few faults I’d still choose NZ over London any day…
Let me know how you’re getting on…
Simon.
I beg to differ on few things in your post…
First of all, yes, accomodation can be expensive in ChCh but paying $300/wk in Rangiora… …you can get places in ChCh for that price, nothing fancy but still a roof on top of your head. And besides, have you heard of flatting, you can get ‘packages’ (rent+bills) for $180-250/wk anywhere in the city.
Secondly, not every company expect you to work full 70hrs/wk. Yes, there’s lot of them but lot of cases you don’t have to but you can if you want to. In my case, I’ve made it pretty clear that I work Mon to Fri and I’m happy with app. 55hrs/wk and my bosses respect that. Of course, if and when needed, I work more and might even do occasional weekend work but only if being asked nicely. I’ve told my bosses that I’ve got life outside work and they respect it, you can reason with kiwis easily.
And least but not least, ChCh ain’t really that bad. Okay, you’ve lived in London so Auckland might be more your thing but just look at everything that’s happening in ChCh atm, all this development and this opportunity to witness city rebuilding itself and becoming more like us, residents, want it to become. Yes, CBD is pretty messed up but pretty much every week there’s something new coming up, whether it’ll be a new corner pub or just a gap filler but honestly, this city is evolving every day. You just need to get out there and start exploring. And, instead of beers, head out to outdoors, we’ve got such a stunning nature around us, right within our reach. Think about it, you could start you morning surfing in New Brighton and by afternoon you could be skiing in Mt Hutt, only few hrs drive from the city.
A friend of ours lives in Napier and reckons there are plenty of jobs and why don’t we move there? … Bit too late at our time of life