The Nadi Chamber of Commerce and Industry has urged an urgent review of immigration processes after business leaders warned lengthy visa delays are deepening a skills shortfall that could choke off the town’s economic momentum. Speaking at the NCCI Business Symposium at the Tanoa Skylodge Hotel on Friday, chamber president Lawrence Kumar said some work visas are taking as long as eight to ten months to clear, leaving employers unable to fill critical roles.
Kumar told the symposium the event gave members a direct forum to press the Ministry of Employment and the deputy director of the Immigration Department for solutions to the protracted timelines. “If you look at certain work visas, it takes eight months, 10 months, so we’re trying to find a solution as to how those timelines could be reduced and what the employers could do to ensure they meet the compliance documentation that the Immigration Department is looking at,” he said.
The urgency stems from a construction boom in Nadi. Kumar said the surge in building activity is outpacing the capacity of the local labour market and that contractors increasingly have no option but to recruit skilled workers from overseas. He identified Bangladesh, India, the Philippines and Sri Lanka as key sources of the foreign labour currently being tapped to fill those gaps, adding that bureaucratic hurdles around approvals remain the primary concern for the business community.
Improving employers’ compliance documentation was flagged as a practical step to speed approvals, Kumar said, but he also stressed the need for the immigration system itself to be reviewed to ensure timelines match commercial realities. “Not only in Nadi but the whole of Fiji. There’s a huge amount of skill gap that is currently faced in the whole country. So, in order for the economy to do well….to thrive, you need to have the right skilled people to be in the workforce,” he told the gathering.
The chamber’s call echoes frustrations raised by other sectors in recent months. Shipping companies and other employers have previously reported extended processing times for essential immigration files, arguing delays increase operational costs and risk the loss of experienced foreign staff. NCCI leaders said those examples underline a systemic problem rather than isolated administrative backlogs.
At the symposium, members pressed for concrete changes—from clearer guidance on documentary requirements to possible fast-track mechanisms for critical sectors such as construction. While NCCI stopped short of prescribing specific policy fixes, it urged immigration and employment authorities to prioritise a review and deliver measurable reductions in processing times to prevent project delays and avoid deterring investment.
Kumar said the chamber will continue engaging government agencies to push for an effective, timely response. “So that is the area that the members have raised concern on, in terms of dealing with the immigration office, the process around it, dealing with the approvals,” he said, framing the issue as central to sustaining Nadi’s growth and wider economic recovery across Fiji.