Most business owners incorrectly think employer accreditation is an immigration process.
Instead, its a financial and commercial assessment of your business.
Immigration New Zealand is not just asking: “Do you want to hire people?”
They’re asking: “Is your business financially viable and sustainable?”
From an accountant’s perspective, there are 4 ways to prove this.
In this article, I’ll walk you through each option and how to decide what works best for your business.
Option 1: Showing your business has not made a loss in the last 2 years
The most straightforward pathway is to show that your business has been profitable.
Specifically, this means that your business has not made a loss (before depreciation and tax) in the last 2 years.
From an accounting perspective, this tells Immigration New Zealand:
- Your business model works
- You are generating real income
- You are not relying on funding to survive
Evidence to provide includes either:
- the latest available Inland Revenue (IR) tax return documents for your business, for example an IR4 Companies income tax return and an IR10 Financial statement summary, or
- the last available annual reports or financial statements for the business for the past 2 years, for example links to publicly available annual reports.
If there is a period that is not covered by previous financial reports, you can provide an interim financial report. For example, if you are applying in September 2026, you can provide an interim financial report that covers the period between April 2026 and September 2026.
Option 2: Showing your business has had a positive cash flow for each month in the last 6 months
If your business has had positive cashflow for each month in the last 6 months, this can support your application, even if profits are still stabilising.
This is because while profit is important, its cashflow what keeps a business alive.
Evidence to provide includes:
- annual reports or a financial statement for the organisation for the past 2 years, for example links to publicly available annual reports
- a current 6-month cashflow statement that is broken down by month.
From an accountant’s perspective, this is about:
- Timing of income vs expenses
- Whether your business can meet its obligations
- Whether you can sustainably pay employees
Practical tip: Don’t just submit a spreadsheet. Make sure your cashflow is clearly structured and ties back to your financials.
Option 3: Showing your business has sufficient capital or external investments
If your business is early-stage or still growing, you may not yet be profitable or cashflow positive.
In that case, you can rely on capital or external funding.
This can come from:
- Founders
- Parent companies
- Trusts
- External investors
Evidence should include:
- annual reports or a financial statement for the organisation for the past 24 months, for example links to publicly available annual reports
- bank statements showing the available balance
- financial forecasts or cashflow projections.
If your financial accounts for the latest financial year are not ready, you can provide a draft copy.
Having money in the bank is not enough.
Immigration New Zealand wants to see:
- How that capital will be used
- Whether it can sustain the business
- Whether it supports a viable operation
Option 4: Showing your business has a credible 2-year business plan
This is the most misunderstood pathway, and often the most powerful when done correctly.
If your business does not meet the other criteria, you can rely on a credible 2-year business plan.
Evidence should include your 2-year business plan. I recommend the plan includes:
- evidence of future work or contracts
- total capital investment
- the budget for any operational expenses, including wages or salaries
- latest organisational charts
- evidence of market research, if relevant or available.
I recommend you also provide:
- financial forecasts or cashflow projections for the organisation for the next 2 years
- IR tax return documents for the last 2 years, for example IR4 Companies income tax return and an IR10 Financial statements summary, or your most recent annual reports or financial statements for the business.
If your financial accounts for the latest financial year are not ready, you can provide a draft copy.
From an accountant’s perspective, this is where your numbers need to tell a clear story.
Not just projections, but defensible projections.
Case study: getting it over the line
Recently, we helped a business get Employer Accreditation approved after initial concerns.
The business was relatively new, so it didn’t meet the usual criteria:
- No 2-year profitability history
- No consistent long-term cashflow
The initial approach was to rely on “sufficient capital” because the business had funds in the bank.
But that was weak.
Capital alone does not prove viability. Immigration New Zealand wants to see whether your business can sustain itself, not just whether you have money sitting there.
We repositioned the application around a 2-year business plan.
After submission, Immigration New Zealand pushed back. This is not uncommon, especially when case officers are not fully across business models or financial structures.
Instead of accepting the pushback:
- We helped clarified the business model
- Defended the numbers
- Worked closely with the solicitor to respond clearly
And the accreditation was approved.
The takeaway for business owners
Employer Accreditation is not just a form-filling exercise. It’s about having the right people to defend it when challenged.
If your accountant is just preparing numbers and not working with your solicitor, you are leaving gaps in your application. And those gaps can lead to rejection.
Want help getting accredited with Immigration New Zealand?
If you’re applying for Employer Accreditation and want to make sure your numbers actually support your application, I’m happy to help.