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Official immigration pages use these words as though everyone already knew them. Here is what each means in plain language, with a link to the free guide that explains it properly.
Permission to live in a country for good, with no expiry date on your right to stay. A permanent resident can normally work for any employer and study anywhere, but is not a citizen, so no passport of that country and usually no vote. People often shorten it to "PR". Visa, PR and citizenship
Temporary permission to enter a country and stay for a fixed purpose and a fixed time, such as visiting, studying or working. It has an expiry date and conditions attached. Canada calls the document that lets you study or work a permit, and New Zealand calls everything a visa. Visa, PR and citizenship
Full membership of a country, normally applied for after several years as a permanent resident. It brings a passport and the right to vote, and it does not expire. Visa, PR and citizenship
A citizen or permanent resident who applies to bring a family member to live with them, and who makes a legal promise to support that person financially for a set period. Both of them have to qualify. Visa, PR and citizenship
A family member included in your application rather than applying separately, normally a spouse or partner and children under an age the government sets. Dependants change what you must show, because money requirements count everyone in the family. Proof of funds, explained
Not a programme but the online system Canada uses to manage applications to three federal programmes for skilled workers. You create a profile, it joins a shared pool, and candidates are invited out of that pool. Express Entry, explained
The points score that ranks every profile in the Express Entry pool. Points come from age, education, language ability, work experience, a partner's details where there is one, and extras such as a provincial nomination. How the CRS works
The pool is where every eligible Express Entry profile waits. The department holds a draw, sets a cutoff score for it, and invites everyone at or above that score to apply. Cutoffs move from draw to draw, so nobody can promise you one. How the CRS works
The National Occupational Classification (NOC) is Canada's official list of jobs, and every job on it carries a five-digit code. TEER is the category, from 0 to 5, that the list puts each job in, based on the training and responsibility the job usually needs. Together they decide whether your work experience counts. NOC and TEER, explained
A report from an organisation Canada has approved, confirming that a qualification you earned outside Canada is genuine and stating what it is equal to in Canadian terms. You need one whenever you want foreign education to count. The ECA, explained
Canada does not read your language test result directly. It converts it onto its own scale: the Canadian Language Benchmarks for English, and the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens for French. The two are numbered identically, so CLB 7 and NCLC 7 mean the same level. Language tests, CLB and NCLC
A document an employer obtains that says hiring a particular foreign worker will not harm the Canadian labour market. It is issued by the employment department rather than the immigration one, and many work permits cannot be applied for without it. The LMIA, explained
The route by which a province or territory picks candidates who suit its own labour needs and nominates them. A nomination is not permanent residence by itself, and you still apply to the federal department afterwards. The PNP, explained
Evidence that you have enough savings to support yourself and your family after you arrive, before you start earning. The amount depends on family size, and the department publishes a table it updates, so read the current one there. Proof of funds, explained
New Zealand's main points-based route to residence for skilled workers. It is a threshold rather than a competition: reach the required points, meet the conditions underneath them, and you qualify, without being ranked against anybody else. The SMC, explained
A shortlist of occupations New Zealand has flagged as being in long-term shortage. If your occupation is on it, the route to residence is faster and more direct than the points route. The list is split into two tiers that move at different speeds. The Green List, explained
A New Zealand employer has to be approved by the immigration department before it can hire a migrant worker at all. Once it is, it can hire on the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV), the main temporary work visa, which checks the employer, then the job, then you. The AEWV, explained
New Zealand describes every job with a six-digit code from its National Occupation List, and each code carries exactly one skill level, from 1 to 5. The skill level then affects what the job must pay and which visas are open to it. Occupation codes, explained
A report from the New Zealand Qualifications Authority saying where a qualification you earned overseas sits on New Zealand's own ladder of qualifications, so a visa officer can read it the way they read a New Zealand one. It is the New Zealand counterpart of Canada's ECA. The NZQA assessment
The wage in the middle of everything New Zealand's workers earn, used as a benchmark. Several visa rules are written as a multiple of it rather than as a fixed amount, so the requirement moves when the benchmark does. The immigration department publishes the current figure. The SMC, explained