COMPLAINTS PROCESS

If you wish to make a complaint, please read the following……..

1. Assessment of complaints is based on the Rules and the Code of Ethics of the New Zealand Association for Migration and Investment.

2. NZAMI can only process complaints against its members.

3. The Rules of the Association and the Code of Ethics can be found on this website.

Penalties

If a complaint is upheld, the Board may take any of the following actions, depending on the seriousness of the breach by the member:

1. Counsel

If there is a minor infringement, the Board will make recommendations to the member for improvement in that area.

2. Censure

If the infringement is more serious, the Board will censure the member. This is a strong reprimand and should be taken as a serious outcome.

3. Suspension of Membership

The Board may suspend a member if urgent action is necessary in order to protect the client’s person, documents or funds while further investigation takes place.

4. Termination of Membership

If there has been a serious breach of the Rules or Code of Ethics, the Board may terminate the membership of the member.

Procedure for Complaints

1. Email or write to the Secretary:

(i) Clearly explain the facts of what happened and state what your complaint is

(ii) You can clarify your complaint by stating which Code(s) of Ethics you believe the member has not followed. The NZAMI Code of Ethics is published on the website.

(iii) Attach a copy of your contract for immigration services with the member.

Note: Make sure that you include all the necessary information on your complaint. Once the process has begun, you may not introduce new material.

2. The Secretary will acknowledge receipt of your complaint.

3. The Secretary will send the complaint to the member who will be expected to respond within 14 days.

4. The Secretary will send the member’s response to you for your comment within 14 days.

(If the Secretary does not receive your comment within 14 days the complaint may be cancelled).

5. The Secretary will send your complaint to the Investigations Committee who will:

(i) Consider the material provided by both parties and decide whether they think any breaches of the Code of Ethics or Rules have taken place.

(ii) Make recommendations to the Board and suggest appropriate penalties

(iii) The Board will consider the report and make a ruling.

6. The Secretary will send a letter of Interim Findings (and proposed penalties, if any) to both parties for final comment.

7. The Board will consider the responses to the Interim Findings, finalise the complaint and decide on any penalties against the member.

8. The Secretary will inform you and the member of the decision of the Board.

9. The complaint and the outcome will be recorded on the Association’s database.

Note: The length of time taken by the above process will depend on the complexity of the complaint, the time commitments of the voluntary Investigations Committee members and the dates of Board meetings.