New Zealand has said it will tighten access to its skilled work visas, just a day after the United States and neighbouring Australia announced similar restrictions on immigration.
New Zealand's immigration minister said he was taking a "Kiwis-first approach to immigration", echoing Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and US President Donald Trump in announcing policies to ensure jobs for Australians and Americans.
Migration has become a hot topic in the lead up to New Zealand's general election on 23 September.
"These changes are designed to strike the right balance ... and encourage employers to take on more Kiwis and invest in the training to upskill them," immigration minister Michael Woodhouse said in a statement.
The changes to be introduced later this year include introducing a minimum income requirement, making it more difficult for family members to join visa holders and limiting the amount of time seasonal workers are allowed to stay in New Zealand.
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A boom in new arrivals has helped the New Zealand economy race along with some of the strongest gross domestic product growth in the developed world.
But opposition parties and the central bank have called for a review of current policies, citing low wages growth and soaring house prices spurred by the influx.
Many sectors, such as technology and construction, suffer from a severe shortage of workers and companies in these areas were recruiting many of their workers from offshore.
Under the changes, employers would need to provide a minimum income of NZ$49,000 (€32,000) for anyone entering on a prioritised "skilled" visa.
Anyone earning more than NZ$73,000 would be classed as highly skilled.
Australia yesterday said it would abolish a temporary work visa popular with Irish people and replace it with a new programme requiring better job skills.
Thousands of Irish have entered Australia on the 457 Visa since 1996.
The 457 Visa will be replaced by two new types of visas for two years and four years.
However, Australia's Ambassador to Ireland Richard Andrews told RTÉ News that while the new visas had reduced the number of qualifying occupations, very few of the occupations usually cited by Irish people had fallen off the list.
He said it was not necessarily the case that fewer Irish people would qualify for the new visas.
Mr Andrews also said the change was not a protectionist move but was about making immigration work for the Australian national interest.
President Trump has ordered federal agencies to look at tightening a temporary visa programme used to bring high-skilled foreign workers to the United States.
Mr Trump signed an executive order on enforcing and reviewing the H-1B visa, popular in the technology industry.
Following the US visa changes signalled yesterday by Mr Trump, Enterprise Ireland has advised companies looking to relocate employees there to look at other highly skilled visa schemes.
