Victims of family violence policy creates more victims

Ankur Sabharwal is the owner of immigration advisory Visa Matters. He is a licensed immigration adviser dealing with complex immigration matters.

OPINION: This column is about my clients Raj and Manjit*, who married in 2022, and Sonia, Raj’s ex-wife.

Raj is a New Zealander. His first wife, Sonia, came to New Zealand from India two months after their marriage in 2015.

Soon after Raj and Sonia began living together in New Zealand, there was conflict. The couple separated in February 2016, but continued seeing each other.

Sonia applied for a protection order in 2018, claiming that Raj had abused her physically, psychologically and sexually.

For his part, Raj denies abusing Sonia and claims that her allegations are made up. Although the police were called to intervene between them, Raj was never charged with any crime. The temporary protection order against him was discharged, and Raj and Sonia divorced later in 2018.

Raj began a new relationship with Manjit in 2022. The couple married in October last year and Manjit came to New Zealand on a visitor visa in March 2023. On her application form, she declared Raj as her husband.

After arriving in New Zealand, Manjit applied for a work visa as Raj’s partner. During Immigration NZ’s processing of this application, INZ told Manjit she cannot be approved on any partnership-based visa, because Raj is not an eligible supporting partner.

Raj is banned for life from supporting Manjit’s visa applications, because – unknown to both of them – Raj’s ex-wife Sonia had been approved residence under the Victims of Family Violence (VFV) category.

How could this happen?

In approving a VFV application, INZ can accept a statutory declaration from a victim of family violence as evidence that violence has occurred. Two further statutory declarations are required from professionals such as social workers, doctors, nurses or staff members of women’s refugees.

But INZ never asks the so-called perpetrator of family violence his side of the story. It’s a safety issue, INZ told me.

So, it is quite possible – even likely – that a New Zealander such as Raj will only find out that he is banned from supporting a new partner once his new partner applies for a visa.

Is this fair?

It’s fair to prevent New Zealanders from bringing a new partner to New Zealand if they abused their last partner.

But Manjit is also a victim here.

Manjit’s relationship with Raj is genuine and stable. She came to New Zealand to live with Raj in this relationship, but suddenly, her life was thrown into turmoil.

She still holds a visitor visa but can only apply for a student visa to stay longer. She may not be able to stay permanently.

If Manjit has to return to India, it will bring shame on her and her family. This is her second marriage, and she believes her community will judge her if she returns to India on her own.

What can be done?

The Ombudsman looked into this issue after receiving six complaints from New Zealanders in 2018, whose former partners had been approved residence under the VFV category without their knowledge.

In March 2021, Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier concluded that it was unreasonable for INZ not to allow former partners of VFV category applicants to comment on allegations of family violence against them.

He recommended that INZ review its policies so that New Zealanders are informed of allegations of family violence if it is safe to do so, and so that they are given the chance to rebut these allegations.

In 2021, INZ promised to review its Partnership Category – which bans New Zealanders whose former partners were approved under the VFV category from supporting further applications – but until now, the review is still “in progress”.

No options for changes have been put to any Minister of Immigration, I was told by INZ.

That needs to happen, in my opinion.

In the meantime, clients like Manjit and Raj need to ask the Minister for a “special direction” to approve an exception to the current policy.

And Manjit’s life is on hold until she knows whether she can stay living with her husband in New Zealand.

*All three names have been changed.

DISCLAIMER: This article does not constitute immigration advice. Individuals need to seek personal advice from a New Zealand licensed immigration adviser or lawyer to assess their unique situation. Ankur can be contacted at info@visamatters.co.nz.