I moved to BsAs, because of work in January 2002 - really not th most opportune time to arrive - and my family and I stayed until 2005, when the company wanted to move me back to my home country (UK): As I had no desire to go there I quit and moved to NZ.
We started our residency application whilst still living in Argentina. The whole process takes into account your age, nationality, training and qualifications, health, whether you have a regular income from abroad, a confirmed job in NZ to go to etc. Once processed your are allocated a quantity of points. The Immigration Service then determines the number of points required to attain residency, depending upon the perceived need of the country for immigrants i.e. if there is a shortage of, say, carpenters and you have that experience, are young (30 ish) then you will likely get a point count of about 130 and the barrier for entry may be set at 100, so residency will come quickly.
I was 47 (the age limit is 55) and had no job offer, when we arrived. Fortunately my ex had qualified as a nurse, so we gained extra points for that, but once we arrived in Auckland, we were faced with a barrage of requirements, relating to health checks, references as to my exs training en Edinburgh etc. During this time my youngest son was not officially allowed to go to school, nor were we officially allowed to do even voluntary work. Fortunately I found work after three months, got my work visa in about 3 days and residency after about 6 weeks.
Having arrived from BsAs, it was a shock to find bars closing at 1000pm once away from the larger population centres. The Kiwis like their barbeques too but inevitably it will be a gas BBQ....and if you do want to use charcoal, it is made from off cuts of plywood and stuff like that, so better off using leña.
I found Auckland OK, with all the beaches, the wonderful views over the bay etc but ultimately prefered Wellington, which is a much smaller and compact city with a very vibrant heart to it. The weather there can be pretty grim at times but, as the locals say, "You can't beat Wellington on a good day"!
Ultimately I ended up leaving NZ, and my family, and returned to BsAs (long story) hoping to find work there. In the end I was offered work in Nueva Palmira, Uruguay. I have recently left that job as I am now married to a lass from MVD, so am now looking for work in the capital.
NZ is what you make of it and it is not for everyone, having said which there are many instances of "yo yo" expats, who move to NZ individually or as a family, then after a while get home sick, go back to their roots, then quickly realis they felt happier and more secure in NZ, and so return.
My then Uruguayan girlfriend came with me on a visit to my sons/NZ and was amazed that she could leave her handbag somewhere whilst she looked at clothes etc and that she didn`t have to worry about anyone stealing it.
As mentioned elsewhere, once you are in paperwork that would involve escribanos/abogados here in S.Am and take days, with lots of queuing at different state bodies, can be sorted in 30 mins over there.
Personally I had very little problem understanding the Kiwis and I worked in a company with many Maori.
So this post serves neither to recommend nor put down NZ. I enjoyed my time there, met some great people but ultimately was drawn back to the Latin culture.
Cheers
Ian
