An Auckland company director has been ordered to pay $203,469.89 after the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) found he was personally involved in breaches affecting three Vietnamese migrant workers.
Employment New Zealand reported the decision on 5 November 2026. Huy Quang Tran was the sole director of High-End Renov Group Limited (HERG), a labour-hire firm that supplied painters and plasterers to construction sites in Auckland and Christchurch. The company entered liquidation in March 2025 and has since been removed from the Companies Register.
While it was operating, HERG recruited workers from Vietnam, Tran's country of birth, according to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).
What the Authority ordered
ERA member Robert Davies ordered Tran to pay:
- $132,291.14 in wage arrears, holiday pay and unlawfully received employment premiums to three former employees
- $71,178.75 in penalties for his involvement in the breaches
Of the penalty sum, each of the three workers is to receive $6,000, with the remaining $53,178.75 going to the Crown. Interest and costs sit outside the $203,469.89 total.
The Authority found failures to pay minimum wage and holiday entitlements, inadequate record keeping, and unlawful premiums sought from two of the workers.
The $30,000 "job fees" paid in Vietnam
Two workers each paid $30,000 to obtain employment with HERG. The payments were made in Vietnam before they arrived in New Zealand and were linked to jobs arranged through the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme.
Tran said the money was personal loan repayments. The Authority rejected that explanation and found the payments were made to secure employment. It ordered the $60,000 in premiums repaid.
MBIE says the fact the money changed hands overseas did not stop New Zealand employment law applying, because the payments related to employment in New Zealand.
Why the offshore loophole matters
Last month the Employment Court confirmed that overseas payments made to secure a New Zealand job are prohibited under the Wages Protection Act 1983. That Act already banned charging a fee for a job; the October ruling clarified that the ban covers premiums paid outside New Zealand as well.
RNZ reported separately on 5 November that migrant advocates see the Court decision as closing a loophole recruiters had used by arranging payments offshore, often with little documentation.
For Asian workers who are asked to pay "agency fees", "training deposits" or "placement costs" before boarding a plane, the practical warning is blunt: a receipt issued in another country does not automatically make the charge lawful in New Zealand if it was the price of the job.
Directors can still be chased after a company collapses
HERG no longer exists as a registered company. The Authority still held Tran personally liable. Acting Head of the Labour Inspectorate Jeanie Borsboom said the case showed directors who breach employment standards can be held accountable, and that employers cannot hide behind poor record systems.
Davies said the breaches were serious, affected fundamental protections, and that the premiums were especially serious because of their size and their link to the prospect of New Zealand work.
What to do if you paid for a job
MBIE encourages anyone who thinks they or someone else has been treated unfairly at work to contact its contact centre on 0800 20 90 20. Concerns are handled in a safe environment, Employment New Zealand says.
Keep any transfer records, chat messages, contracts and visa paperwork. If you are still on an AEWV, your visa conditions are separate from a wage or premium claim — get immigration advice before changing jobs or leaving New Zealand.
Migrant job security sits alongside wider labour-market pressure. Unemployment rose to 5.7% in the September 2026 quarter, which we covered here. Work-to-residence settings are also shifting: 17 trades leave the Green List pathway from March 2027.
Paying for a job is illegal in New Zealand. After the October Employment Court ruling and this ERA order, that rule reaches fees demanded overseas as well.
Sources: Employment New Zealand / MBIE, Company director ordered to pay more than $203,000 after migrant worker breaches (5 November 2026); RNZ reporting on the related Employment Court ruling (5 November 2026).