The Immigration Minister is promising a better and fairer immigration system after re-starting two key visas - skilled migrants and parents.
But the system is already struggling with its current workload, leading to questions of how it will cope with more work.
The list of immigration frustrations is longer than the line to see the minister at a meeting on Wednesday. He announced the Government would reopen the crown jewel of our immigration system, the Skilled Migrant Category, and give it a facelift.
"If we boil it down, our new immigration approach through the rebalance is about fairness, productivity and security," Michael Wood said.
The aim of the residency game is to get to six points and they're weighted towards time in the country and education. For example, if you've been professionally registered for six years, have a PhD or earn over $170k you get six points.
Lesser degrees and lower wages get fewer points, and each year you've lived in New Zealand gets you a point.
"These people are not going to be a cost to New Zealand, these people are going to build the country and do good things for us," Wood said.
But the minister's making it tougher for those who would do a lot of the actual building, unqualified labourers.
"The question is who will build the bridges, who will lay the concrete, who will ultimately do those jobs?" said immigration advisor Jens Mueller.
Six years after the last National Government shut it, Wood has restarted residents bringing in their parents. That includes Pranav Birla, whose folks have been waiting all that time.
"They were like, that's really good news to wake up to, they were stoked," said Birla.
But that might have to wait even longer, as immigration advisor Katy Armstrong said it could take four years to clear the backlog.
Wood said: "I have real confidence that they will be good processing."
Immigration New Zealand has been drowning in visa applications. More than 100,000 applications since July - three times more than expected - and they've already had to bring in an incident management team.
The minister on Wednesday made massive promises to migrants that he's now going to have to deliver on.
