Yep.
I wonder what visa he was here on for 7 years? If it was a temporary work visa then 7 years isn't particularly temporary. It could be that he had a residence permit but not a permanent residence visa until he joined the nix. The main difference being that a permanent residence visa is required to leave the country.
Of course if the Phoenix was NZF they would read the first article and not the second and assume that they are right.