Seek.com

A friend recommended that I sign up to this online job data bank. That's what I did. Apart from that, I signed up at Seek.com.nz,too. Just to have more options.

I filtered my job alerts to "insurance", "financial services" and "customer service". It pulled up quite a number of job openings. It got me all excited and so I clicked apply.

What got me more excited was the positive response from the recruiter. They required me to complete an applicant profile. The profile will be submitted to the employer for review and consideration.

I waited and waited... The recruiter emailed me back and asked me "Do you have the right to work in Australia or New Zealand?"

I responded back and told the recruiter that I need sponsorship from the employer. Since my occupation does not form part of the "shortage list", I didn't make the cut. The recruiter suggested that I apply for a permanent resident visa and they would gladly assist me in seeking employment upon arrival in Oz or NZ.

I left it that. At that point, the idea of doing the process the long way (read:permanent resident visa application) didn't appeal to me. It's tedious and expensive. What I did after that was to try my chances with other recruiters. But I got the same response from them, "Do you have the right to work in Australia or New Zealand?" Further, they referred me to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (http://www.immi.gov.au) website for more information about immigration. Oh boy.