This follows the Aged Care Association claiming the three-year limit for Visas is putting people off coming to New Zealand.

And this is causing the country to lose rest home workers.

Aged Care Association Chief Executive Simon Wallace told Mike Hosking even after the industry got a pay rise, kiwis aren't taking up the jobs.

He says bringing people from overseas is the sector's best hope for keeping up with the demand our aging population is putting on the industry.

"We need a thousand extra caregivers a year between now and 2026 to cope with that growing demand."

He says work's being done to recruit more people, but the government needs to do its part.

"We are working actively to train and employ kiwis but immigration is our fallback position and we need to have policies that support the recruitment and retention of those workers."

LISTEN ABOVE AS SIMON WALLACE SPEAKS TO MIKE HOSKING