Tell us about yourself - where were you born, where did you study, what did you do before moving?
Now my name is Alex Grace (formerly Alexey Korneev), traditionally, I am a native Krasnoyarsk resident and until my emigration I lived in Krasnoyarsk most of my life with a short “business trip” to study in Moscow.
Alexey Korneev
Photo from personal archive
Until grade 9, I studied at school No. 95 (North-Western), then transferred to school No. 41 in Akademgorodok, now gymnasium No. 13. In 2000, after school, I simultaneously entered KSU for International Economic Relations (International Economic Relations) and to the Higher School of Economics for sociology. The choice was obvious - I left for Moscow. However, sociology did not “hook” me at all, so after a couple of years I returned back to Krasnoyarsk to finish my studies at KSU at the Faculty of International Economic Relations.
After graduation, I worked as a system administrator for a couple of years. Then I was invited to a startup to oversee IT and web development. Everything was going well there until the company was squeezed by competitors and the management suddenly decided to ditch everyone and disappear. A very typical and sad story. This gave a serious impetus (I would even say a kick) to stop working “for my uncle” and start doing my own thing.
Then I had my own web development studio and IT outsourcing company. There were enough clients not to die of hunger, but the pace of development was weak. Plus, at times clients could seriously let us down with payments, which happened before my trip to the USA (which I will talk about later) and which ultimately seriously affected the rest of my life, including emigration.
After the USA, I never returned to Krasnoyarsk; I settled in Moscow for the next 2 years, having received an invitation to the position of IT director at a Digital marketing agency. Having paid off all my debts and earned enough money for a year and a half of study and life, in the spring of 2014 I bought tickets to the other side of the globe, to a new life.
Silver Fern Visa
The Silver Fern visa is designed to attract qualified young professionals to New Zealand. It is important to note that this type of visa documentation entails the possibility of obtaining permission online through a special service. The Silver Fern is issued only once a year and allows a citizen to enter New Zealand for a period not exceeding nine months to find a company for the purpose of carrying out professional activities there. It should be noted that each year the service allocates a certain number of submitted visas, equal to 300 units.
After a young specialist is given a job offer, the Silver Fern Job Search visa must be changed to a Silver Fern Practical Experience. This is done to enable the citizen to continue to carry out professional activities in New Zealand for a period not exceeding two years. In addition, a person has the right to apply or not to apply for a residence permit. So, he can live in New Zealand, work there and calmly leave for his own country.
In your case, does moving abroad mean going there? Or leave here?
I have never had such a strong desire to leave Russia. From Krasnoyarsk - yes, every year Krasnoyarsk seemed to me more and more cramped, dirtier, worse... I visited many cities in Russia and clearly realized that the only place where I could live and feel comfortable in Russia was Moscow . That’s why we stayed in Moscow in 2012.
If I wanted to go somewhere, it would be to the USA, but it was at the level of some kind of abstract dream.
Although the fact that almost all of my classmates (from school at the Academy) were scattered around the world was thought-provoking. By the way, many of my friends have already registered on Newslab.ru - Kirill Leontyev, Vanya Kryukov-Bely, Mikha Kudryashov-Bol and others.
A turning point in our lives was a trip to the USA for the wedding of Yulia’s cousin. We prepared for a long time, and then exactly what I wrote about earlier happened - several of our clients suddenly “disappeared from the radar.” We missed a large sum, which we really counted on. After some discussion, we decided to go anyway, using credit money. After the trip, we were faced with a half-million dollar debt (a terrifying figure at the time!), which, fortunately, we were able to quickly pay off.
And this trip greatly changed my perception of the world - I saw HOW you can live differently (and the understanding came that “You can’t live like that” - I’m talking about our life in Russia). That’s when we decided that we needed to get out of here.
Current programs
Immigration to New Zealand from Russia and other countries of the world is usually carried out by citizens in accordance with one of the programs, including the government program for professional immigration (revised and supplemented in 2007). So, to take part in it you need to score 100 points according to the above criteria. Only after this, the application of a citizen of a certain country is received by the New Zealand Immigration Service for the purpose of consideration and further approval or rejection. It is important to note that the duration of the process is no more than three months from the date of filing the application, but exceptions are appropriate here too. People who score 160 points or more are automatically accepted (previously this threshold was 140 points). Thus, it is the points for immigration to New Zealand that are the determining factor for success. At the end of the consideration of the application, there are three options: the citizen receives the status of a permanent resident of New Zealand, the decision is considered “deferred” (issuance of a work visa to carry out work in a given country) or refusal, as a rule, due to illiterate documentation.
Immigration programs in New Zealand often involve the acquisition of a residence permit through investment in the country's economy. A striking example of this is the Investor Plus and Investor programs, which are extremely popular in society today.
Why New Zealand?
Together with Yulia, we began to select the main criteria for a new habitat that were significant to us. We collected a ton of information, read a lot of articles and blogs. After a detailed examination, it turned out that:
- The USA
is great with work, you can choose the climate (the country is large), the culture is suitable, the language is familiar. Plus, we've already been there. Among the factors that do not clearly stand out are ecology and life safety. The downside is that immigration is difficult. - Canada
- everything is good, except the climate (almost Russia, if not colder), not entirely clear job prospects and difficult immigration (at that time one of the most difficult countries for immigration) - Australia
- everything is good, except for the climate (too hot!) and quite dangerous wildlife (snakes, poisonous spiders and other creatures) - New Zealand
- everything is good without obvious disadvantages (the climate then seemed to me clearly better than it actually is, but this is my personal problem)
- The main rating is the standard of living rating
- The Legatum Prosperity Index - New Zealand - 1st place, Canada - 5th place, Australia - 6th place, USA - 17th place. Russia - 95th place. From 149 countries... - Happiness Index
(the happiest countries in the world) - World Happiness Report 2021 - New Zealand - 8th place, Canada - 7th place, Australia - 9th, USA - 14th. Russia - 49th - Rating for quality of life
- Quality of Life Index - Canada - 17th place, New Zealand - 4th place, Australia - 9th, USA - 7th. Russia - 61st
And two more additionally important ratings for me personally:
- Ease of Doing Business Index - Doing business - New Zealand - 1st place, USA - 8th place, Australia - 15th place, Canada - 22nd place. Russia - 40th place.
- Life Safety Index
- Global Peace Index - New Zealand - 4th place, USA - 103rd place, Australia - 15th place, Canada - 8th place. Russia — 151st place out of 163 countries.
If you look at the raw numbers, the choice is obvious - New Zealand. After much thought, the path was chosen and, at first glance, the path is very strange and ambiguous - Yulia is the first to fly away... to the USA. In a couple of months I'm leaving... for New Zealand!
Of course, there were serious reasons for this. We have a cat - an ordinary Siberian yard cat (those who know me well know that I love animals even more than people). And we, of course, could not abandon him in Russia. But animals cannot be imported into New Zealand from countries with unfavorable living conditions.
. There is a small list (no more than 20) of countries from which relatively problem-free import of animals is allowed. To be able to import a cat, he had to be in one of the countries on the “safe” list for at least six months in quarantine before arriving in the country.
In general, it was decided to send Yulia and her cat to one of the countries on the list for these six months. Fortunately, the USA is on this list, and the cat and Yulia (on a student visa) safely flew to Seattle to visit Yulia’s cousin, to whom we were flying for a wedding. In the end, everyone was a relative winner: the cat was with us and in “quarantine” at the same time, Yulia got the opportunity to study English at an American college for six months, I earned extra money and flew to New Zealand. Their business trip to the USA, however, cost us a huge amount of money, which we could use to live in New Zealand for at least a year. Of course, many will call this situation with the cat and America an adventure or extravagance. They might even be right. In your value system. In mine, I simply could not do otherwise.
The immigration route we chose was through study. I came to get a level 7 diploma (this is something between our bachelor's and specialist's degrees). This would allow me to obtain an open work visa after studying and would provide a direct path to residency. Since I did not have a specialized IT education (we are economists), I needed to study 2 additional semesters in addition to 1 year.One way or another, six months later Yulia and the cat flew back from their business trip to me in New Zealand and the family was restored in full force in their new location
Fortunately, my first semester grades (all A+) convinced the director that I did not need any more additional semesters. Thanks to this, I studied for only 1 year and 1 month instead of a year and a half. By the way, I graduated with all grades A+, which no one has managed either before or (so far) after me. For this he received the title “Student of the Year” and a medal - not bad
In general, it’s interesting that Russians study here much better than everyone else. At this link you can read a short article that I wrote for my educational institution on the topic “One day in the life of a Regent International student.”
Increasing requirements for immigrants (2016)
It is important to note that at the beginning of October 2021, New Zealand immigration and its rules underwent some changes. Thus, the NZ Department has made adjustments and additions to several programs, including the program for qualified specialists. The central goal of the innovations is to reduce the number of immigrants by at least 10% in the next two years, since the number of applications increases annually, which leads to a significant excess of labor supply over demand, and New Zealand is not a very large country, so its economy is not There is a particular need for a huge number of immigrants.
Thus, the point system discussed above provides new information about the real possibilities for moving a person with a certain number of points. But before, automatic acceptance of an application was appropriate already with 140 points scored. Perhaps this rise refers to a number of temporary phenomena, however, it entails increased motivation of citizens and, of course, a decrease in the number of immigrants. It should also be noted that the requirements for the business immigration program have not changed in any way.
The biggest differences between Russia and New Zealand?
The most important difference between New Zealand and Russia is the people .
Nowhere have I seen such friendly people as here. Even in America people are not like that. They are always ready to help in any situation. What's most interesting is that you also become infected with it. I was very surprised to see how the Russian guys with whom I studied in the same stream strive to help other students who did not succeed in many things. Sami. No requests. Free of charge. Politeness. This is what distinguishes most countries from Russia. All these constant smiles, “Sorry”, “Excuse me”, “Please”, “Thank you” seriously hurt the ear at first, but if you think about it, since childhood we were also taught to say “Thank you”, say hello and be polite. Where does all this disappear over time? But for them it doesn’t disappear.
Tolerance. What I have always disliked in Russia is that many things are either clearly prohibited or condemned in such a way that it would be better if they were prohibited. You have to be like everyone else and you have no right to stand out from the crowd. Here is an interesting example from my personal experience. All my life I wanted to dye my hair some interesting color, but I never could. At school they simply wouldn’t allow me to do this; at work it didn’t fall under “corporate rules.” And walking around Krasnoyarsk in the evening with green hair... is simply simply dangerous. Here I already dyed my hair blond, then bright blue, purple, and silver. Maybe green is next. At the same time, I worked in a serious state company, and now we have such a business that there are many meetings with different directors and other important persons. And... no one cares!
Alexey in a new image
Photo from personal archive
Nobody f-i-k-a-k-o-g-o cares what you look like. And this, in my understanding, is that very feeling of freedom. One of my favorite quotes that I try to follow is: “Inaestimabile bonum est suum fieri” - translated from Latin - “It is an inestimable blessing to be free.” In my understanding, freedom is that you can do whatever you want, as long as it does not interfere with the world around you (and people in particular). Here I feel this freedom. And this is the huge difference between New Zealand and Russia.
Attitude to work. The working day here ends at 17.00 and it is not customary to stay late at work after that. Workaholism is not only not held in high esteem, but it is simply not understood. Work is perceived simply as a means of earning money - nothing more. If you stay late at work after five, it means you have nothing to do at home or you are wasting your time on insignificant things: work is work, but you cannot forget about life.
I have never seen such a simple and convenient banking system You can pay with a card absolutely everywhere. It’s very simple to create your account and get a card (not with regard to a credit card - it’s more complicated, but its use is no different). When you open an account (card), you receive an account number, which can then be used everywhere. The whole system is extremely simple and concise. No million details, invoices, statements and other things. This is probably one of the reasons why New Zealand is the number 1 country for ease of doing business.
Climate and housing. The vast majority here live in houses rather than apartments. There is no central heating whatsoever, and the houses, to put it mildly, are not panel houses. What does this mean? In winter, in such houses, Russian people find it COLD. What are we used to? Winter is coming, we turn on the heating and the house is comfortable. What's going on here? And here - fig. Winter has come and the temperature at home is 15-17 degrees. But no one freezes (except those who arrived, of course).
Purity. Many people walk barefoot here. DOWN THE STREET, shopping - everywhere. Firstly, they don’t freeze - they’ve gotten used to it since childhood. And secondly, because everywhere is CLEAN. And not because they don’t litter or don’t clean up, but because they don’t litter AND
cleaned up.
Traffic on the roads. Firstly, driving on the left. Many people are afraid to drive here, believing that it will be very difficult to change lanes. For me, the switch happened very quickly - I would say it took a maximum of an hour. Secondly, the traffic here is pensioner traffic by Russian standards. If the limit is 50, then everyone drives 50-55, on the highway - 100-105 with a limit of 100. The main thesis is - why rush somewhere? Just chill, bro. As for me... what kind of Russian doesn’t like driving fast ? But one day I was fined 150 NZD (about 6,000 rubles) for speeding (I was racing at 120 km/h) - and the desire to drive disappeared by itself
How to seduce an employer?
How to competently “sell yourself” in New Zealand? Of course, only if the employer sympathizes with the immigrant can we talk about successful employment. After all, giving a job to a newcomer who does not know the language perfectly is a significant risk. Thus, to form the absolute interest of the employer, an immigrant must perfectly fulfill the following three points:
- Availability of the required profession, confirmed by appropriate documentation. This should include not only a diploma, but also various certificates, for example, about taking courses, as well as work experience in this field. It is important to note that recommendations from past employers will also be a great advantage, especially when it comes to professional activities in New Zealand. However, an immigrant should not overestimate himself, but should remember that there are plenty of other immigrants from Asia and Eastern Europe in NZ.
- Knowledge of English at a conversational level in order to communicate comfortably in society and successfully conduct professional activities. It’s great if an immigrant knows professional vocabulary and actively uses it in the process of communication and documentation during work.
- Absolute politeness and culture of behavior, which allows you to find an approach to any person.
How is life for Russians in New Zealand? How do the local population treat them (and Russia as a whole)?
You need to understand that New Zealand is a country of immigrants, which cannot but affect the mentality and attitude towards foreigners. Almost the entire population of the country are foreigners.
Russians live here no worse and no better than everyone else. Basically, Russians can be divided into two categories here: those “who could” and those “who still.” The first category is quite successfully assimilated Russians who speak English well, have a wide circle of friends and acquaintances from the local population and are not attached to the Russian community.
The second is those who brought Russia with them. They don't want to change and therefore often speak little or no English (even if they have lived here for 10 years or more). The social circle of such people consists mainly of fellow Russians. A sort of Brighton in miniature. I can’t say whether their life is good or bad, but I don’t want to live like that. When you attend meetings of such people, you get the strong feeling that you have come back to Russia - the same problems, the same abuse, the same squabbles. Brrr. No, thank you, that's not why I left.
Documents for obtaining a visa
As it turned out, labor immigration to New Zealand (2016) is characterized by some tightening of requirements regarding various aspects of this issue. Nevertheless, the main points of organizing a move to a temporary or permanent place of residence remained unchanged. These include obtaining a visa by submitting a list of documents to the relevant authority:
- A passport that is active at a given time, with a clear photograph of the citizen presented on its page.
- Pre-filled visa application form.
- A document confirming that a citizen has paid for services related to processing a visa application.
- Contract for employment in New Zealand.
- A certificate confirming the satisfactory state of health of an immigrant, called medical.
- A certificate from the police confirming that the citizen has no criminal record.
Is it difficult to find a job?
Finding a job is one thing that can be a stumbling block for many expats. Firstly, you need to understand that in New Zealand any job is respectable. There is no attitude here that if you are, for example, a cleaner or a cashier at Starbucks, then you are a second-class citizen. Secondly, having a job allows you to provide for your life and not look for another part-time job in order to find money to buy butter for your bread.
The New Zealand labor market is unique. Most likely, there is nothing like this anywhere else in the world (perhaps Australia is similar in this regard). You have to understand that New Zealand is a very small country (only 4.5 million inhabitants, not counting 40 million sheep), an agricultural country, very remote from the rest of the world and in certain areas of life very lagging behind “civilized” countries.
All this has a very serious impact on internal culture. Most local companies are small (less than 10 people). Relations within companies therefore extremely rarely have a clearly defined command vertical (hello, the USSR and Russia at the end of the last century). The employees here are like part of a (second) family. Therefore, when they are looking for a new employee for a company, they choose him first as a member of their work family. At the same time, professionalism and compliance fade into the background.
Labor immigration to New Zealand
It is more difficult for non-specialists to leave Russia . To do this, you need to find a job in advance and receive an official invitation from the employer. The only thing is that, by law, a vacant position can be offered to a foreigner only if there are no applicants for it among New Zealanders. The exceptions are foreign citizens who are already working and representatives of the same list of in-demand specialties.
a good chance of emigrating from Russia in connection with employment on the islands . They receive a long-term work visa (the cost of registration is 635 NZD) and after two years of employment and living on the islands they can apply for permanent residence.
There are several work visas in New Zealand - they differ in terms of validity, purpose, rights granted, conditions for obtaining, as well as the documents required for this.
What are you doing now?
After studying, I worked a little in technical support under a contract. At that time, Yulia worked as a cleaner and housekeeper, and then received an annual contract for the position of Marketing Manager at my educational institution. I think my references came in very handy here 
Photo from personal archive
After my short-term contract, I accidentally found a like-minded person from the UK. We started working together and are still working today. In addition, over time, we took my friend from Krasnoyarsk to join us, first for an internship, and then as a staff member. And now Julia has joined us after her contract ended.
Initially, we launched Affiliate Digital agency SLICE Digital (after a recent rebranding), a little later we created a subsidiary project - a service for selecting Internet providers and their tariffs - Broadband Compare NZ (this may sound like some kind of useless thing, but in fact it is very significant for New Zealand portal).
In the end, the subsidiary project even pulled the blanket away from the main one, and we still spend most of our time and energy working on it. This project turned out to be so successful that at our official launch ceremony on June 30, 2021, most industry representatives were present and the New Zealand Minister of Telecommunications Amy Adams herself gave a speech. Success! Now we continue to develop this project, which has grown from a small website into a serious platform for subsequent services, and we plan to launch in Australia and the UK.
Work is in full swing and now, in addition to the office in New Zealand, we also have people working from different parts of Russia and Ukraine. A real international corporation, ha!
Professional immigration is the optimal solution
Today, New Zealand is a highly developed country that willingly invites qualified specialists and investors for permanent residence. It should be noted that immigration to New Zealand is accompanied by extremely high requirements and standards. In addition, this provision applies equally to those wishing to obtain temporary residence, then permanent residence and, finally, citizenship. Up to 50,000 people from 160 different countries arrive there every year. Among them are workers, qualified specialists, investors, as well as private entrepreneurs. Professional immigration to New Zealand requires a citizen of another country to obtain residency or a residence permit. The reasoning for this provision is provided by the New Zealand Immigration Act of 2009. Thus, as a result of acquiring this status, any citizen has the right to live, develop educational or professional activities, receive comprehensive medical care and exercise similar rights in New Zealand.
