The Secondary Principals' Association is unhappy that schools must apply to Immigration New Zealand for accreditation to employ teachers from overseas.
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The border reopens in July and many schools were hoping to employ teachers from overseas to fill vacancies.
But in order to recruit teachers who need work visas schools must become accredited employers.
The association's president, Vaughan Couillault, said the new system was "bureaucratic nonsense".
"Given that the sector runs on a collective agreement so the pay scales are already set, given that government has already declared that there is a shortage in the secondary sector, why are we all having to pay $750 to become an accredited employer? Why can't secondary schools be automatically made accredited employers so we can get on with the business of recruiting from overseas?" he asked.
Immigration New Zealand said it needed to ensure employers were viable, met immigration and employment standards, would not exploit migrants, and would provide appropriate settlement support.
"It is reasonable to expect a school to meet these standards if they are going to employ migrants," it said.
"Accreditation is about checking the employer's behaviour; it's not about the terms and conditions of the job, as these are considered later, at the job check stage of the visa process."
The accredited employer scheme would start on 4 July.
The Education Ministry said before the pandemic about 15 percent of new teachers hired each year came from overseas.