Immigration Guides

When you can't find the right person in New Zealand, hiring from overseas can keep your business running. Before you can offer a job to someone on an Accredited Employer...

Sending a child to school on the other side of the world is a big decision, and for a lot of families the answer is that one parent goes with...

Most parents who come to New Zealand on a work or student visa want their children with them. Some are moving for a job and bringing the whole family. Some...

A decline is not always the end of the matter. Depending on where you are, what immigration status you hold, and why the application was refused, you may be able...

Most students reach this point. Your course runs longer than your visa, you have changed programme, you are finishing a thesis, or you simply need more time. Whatever the reason,...

If your partner holds, or is applying for, a New Zealand student visa for an eligible qualification, you may be able to work full-time in New Zealand for the whole...

The Fee Paying Student Visa is the visa most commonly held by international students in New Zealand. If you have an offer of place from an approved education provider and...

If your job is on Tier 1 of the Green List, you may be able to apply for a Resident Visa straight away. No points test, no two years of...

The Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) is New Zealand's main residence pathway for skilled workers. It is for people who are already working here, or who have a skilled job offer,...

The median wage is the single most important number in New Zealand's visa system. It decides whether your partner can work here, how long your work visa lasts, and whether...

The Post Study Work Visa (PSWV) is how most international graduates stay on in New Zealand after finishing their studies. You do not need a job offer to apply, and...

A decline can feel like the end of the road. It is not. There are recognised options, and many declined applications are resolved successfully. But the right option depends on...

If you are a New Zealand citizen or resident, the Partner of a New Zealander Work Visa lets your partner live and work here while you build your life together....

Partnership visa applications need evidence that your relationship is real. Part of that evidence is letters from people who know you both as a couple. Friends, family, your employer, your...

A relationship ending is difficult enough without the added pressure of worrying about your visa. If your New Zealand Partnership Visa application or current visa is connected to your relationship,...

Whether you and your partner are already here on different visas, planning to move from offshore, or ready to apply for residence together, there's almost always a partnership-based pathway that...

This checklist covers everything you need to gather for a New Zealand Partnership Visa (online) application, whether you're applying for a Resident Visa, Work Visa, or Visitor Visa. Use it...

The Work to Residence pathway lets you apply for residence if you have completed at least 24 months of qualifying work in New Zealand in a Tier 2 Green List...

A simple way to understand this visa and how the process works The Parent Boost Visitor Visa is a new long-term visitor visa designed to allow parents of New Zealand...

If your marriage was culturally arranged, Immigration New Zealand does recognise this and has a specific visa pathway designed to help couples begin living together in New Zealand. On paper,...

The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) is New Zealand's main temporary work visa for skilled migrants who have a job offer from an accredited employer. Introduced to simplify the hiring...

Once you receive employer accreditation from Immigration New Zealand (INZ), your responsibilities don't end there. Accredited employers are subject to post-accreditation checks, which are used to ensure ongoing compliance with...

Your study plan is one of the most important parts of a student visa application. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) uses it to decide whether you are a genuine student, with...

Guide to what to do if you need a Character waiver All applicants for New Zealand visas must be of good character and must not pose a potential security risk....

Immigration New Zealand often contacts applicants before making a final decision on a visa application. When Immigration New Zealand sends a Potentially Prejudicial Information letter, commonly called a PPI letter,...

If Immigration New Zealand contacts you during a visa application, the type of letter you receive matters. Two of the most common letters applicants receive are PPI letters and RFI...

Receiving a Deportation Liability Notice (DLN) from Immigration New Zealand (INZ) can be frightening and overwhelming. However, a DLN does not automatically mean you will be deported. In many cases,...

First, let's talk about Job Change. If you hold an Accredited Employer work visa (AEWV) and want to change one or more of the conditions on your current visa, you...

Special directions are among the most powerful and least understood tools available under New Zealand immigration law. A special direction may allow the Minister of Immigration, the Associate Minister or...

If your temporary visa application is declined after you applied from within New Zealand, you may be able to ask Immigration New Zealand to reconsider the decision. A reconsideration request...

If you are in New Zealand without a valid visa, you are considered to be unlawfully in the country. This can happen if your visa has expired or a new...

When your New Zealand resident visa application is declined or you're facing deportation, the Immigration and Protection Tribunal (IPT) offers a formal avenue for appeal. Understanding how IPT appeals work...

Subject to limited exceptions, all applicants for New Zealand visas must have an acceptable standard of health. If an applicant, or a family member included in the application, does not...

A Permanent Resident Visa, commonly referred to as a PRV, allows a person to live in New Zealand indefinitely with no restrictions on travel in and out of the country....

New Zealand law treats three situations differently: A person who is unlawfully in New Zealand cannot make an ordinary visa application from within New Zealand. An excluded person may be...