KEY POINTS:
The clock is ticking for Alicia Pabellon. Unless she finds a job as an accountant in the next 78 days, she and her husband and three children will be sent home to the Philippines.
Mrs Pabellon, one of several hundred people who have come here on a six-month work-to-residence visa, has been able to find a job only as a petrol station cashier in Glenfield.
She and her husband spent $14,000 on a consultant and air tickets to bring their three daughters to New Zealand, hoping to give them a better education.
One daughter is in Year 10 at Glenfield College, another is in Year 4 at Target Rd Primary School and the youngest, a 3-year-old, is in kindergarten.
But the work-to-residence visa has turned into a nightmare. Mrs Pabellon's initial six-month permit expired on March 27 and she has won an extension until June 28, but she says employers won't give her an accounting job on such a short-term visa.
"When I applied to recruitment agencies they asked for my work permit. When I said it's a six-month work-to-residence visa, they didn't know that one, they had no knowledge about it," she said. "At the moment when they see my work permit expires on June 28, that's a big problem."
She has an accounting degree from the Philippines, but is not a licensed accountant and wants to find a job as an accounting or finance officer.
But time is running out. "They need New Zealand accounting experience."
Her husband has found work as an electronics assembler, but his employer won't give him a permanent job offer so his skills are of no use in applying for permanent residence.
Mrs Pabellon was one of 1300 Filipinos who signed a petition to Immigration Minister David Cunliffe seeking a change to the work-to-residence policy.
The new policy means she will be able to apply for permanent residence as soon as she lands a job in her skilled field. But first she needs to find someone willing to employ her.
* Contact Alicia Pabellon on 021-151-6329, acspab@yahoo.com
