Rather than relying on consultations, a managed approach is most important

It is important to think about the value a consultation will bring to your immigration pathway, and this value is not always what some clients will expect. As New Zealand immigration law changes very often it may not be the best approach to gather a huge amount of information and hen rely only on that information for an application that will be made sometime in the future.

While it is important in most cases to prepare and to prepare early, as we proceed with the application there are 3 factors which we always need to keep in mind:

1. Changes in immigration law and policy may means that documents, eligibility or evidential requirements change, so what you prepare or expect now, may not be the case 2 or 3 months later when we make the application
2. As we proceed with any application we almost always find things that need to be addressed to make the application stronger. Documents may need adjusting, new evidence may be required, or just the information to go on the form may not be right
3. Some evidential documents have a limited lifetime, so it may not be a good idea to prepare them right now, but wait until closer to the application submission. If a document like a police certificate takes a long time to get, then it may need to be planned for early, but timing if often very important to get right.

Consultations are really good to get an overview of the situation and a better idea of how to prepare or what the process may look like, or to answer a specific question relating to a problem you are having at that time. You shouldn’t think of a consultation as a DIY guide to a visa application or appeal though.