A brief look at the steps to becoming a Registered as a Nurse in NZ
First things first – you need to know that you fit the New Zealand Nursing Council criteria. The New Zealand Nursing Council governs the practice of nurses and via your application will assess you for your scope of practice. This may be as a General Nurse, a Mental Health Nurse, a Paediatric Nurse or a Learning Disability Nurse.
as the ‘Council’ so keep an ear out for this term.
I will briefly outline what this process involves. A more thorough explanation can be found at www.nursingcouncil.org.nz on the left hand side of the home page you will find a link called “Registration” then select ‘applicants from the rest of the world’. Here you will find free documents to download.
- You will need to have the equivalent overseas qualification to that of New Zealand Nurses or have completed a programme approved by the Council.
- You must provide verification of your registration from your current registering body (i.e. NMC)
- You must show you are fit to be on the register – details found on website.
- Provide an original copy of a Police Certificate (not a CRB for UK Nurses) from your national or federal police force.
- As from 1 January 2009 all internationally qualified nurses, including those from English speaking countries, will be required to complete an English language assessment. The accepted English language assessments for NZ registration are IELTS or OET. Applicants must gain a score of at least 7.0 in each band of an IELTS test, or a B pass in all categories of the Occupational English Test (OET).
- And you must prove that you are a competent Nurse, again more details on the website.
The next step is to download the application pack (or ask us at Geneva Health to send it to you) and follow the instructions to complete the forms.
- The payment of $485 is in New Zealand Dollars and will need to be included in your application pack before it is processed further.
- References and CV details are explained on the website further.
- Some documents need to be Certified. These are clearly pointed out in the application pack. A solicitor, notary public, or other person authorised to make a statutory declaration can certify papers that are required in the application form. The person has to be authorised to make a statutory declaration, so have been sworn in by the legal system and have a stamp.
The best thing to do is contact our team at Geneva Health and we can discuss the next steps.
If the application pack you send to the council is not complete, the whole application pack is sent back to you. This can be frustrating and a loss of valuable time. Therefore, as we know you are keen to make the move, we offer a free service to you whereby you send your application pack to us at Geneva Health and we will check for obvious mistakes prior to sending it on to the Council for you.
For employment in New Zealand as a Nurse – you will need to have your Nursing Registration. Therefore we suggest that you contact one of our friendly Recruitment Consultants and get the ball rolling!
-- 2008-11-05