The Association met with the Nursing Council in early February 2023 to discuss the processing time for nurses, in particular IQNs, to become registered in New Zealand. Many members will be aware that this process takes many weeks. The Council reassured us that it has undertaken a number of significant policy changes this year to reduce this overall time. The planned change to the CAP system should also help to speed up the process. The Council was keen for us to understand the compared with their international counterparts, New Zealand is the most efficient with registering internationally qualified nurses. We are in fact twice as quick as Australia to process registrations.
The NZACA understands the frustration these delays bring to our members and will continue to work with the Nursing Council to see improvements and to assist our members in supporting their future employees to get through this process as quickly as possible. The Nursing Council has provided a handy table outlining the documentation required for an IQN to gain New Zealand registration. Click here to view the IQN documentation required by the Nursing Council
