If you meet the requirements and are ready to apply for residence, you will need to complete and submit a Temporary Retirement Category Visitor Visa Application (INZ 1172) PDF. Refer to the Temporary Retirement Category Visitor Visa Guide (INZ 1173) PDF to help you fill in the application form.

 

You must provide evidence with your application.

Evidence everyone must provide

For every person included in the application you must provide:

• two passport-size photographs
• photocopies of the identity pages of their passport
• a full birth certificate.

Health

You must show that everyone included in the application meets our health requirements by submitting a completed medical and chest x-ray certificate.

Character

You must show that everyone included in the application who is aged 17 or more meets our character requirements by providing police certificates from their country(ies) of citizenship, and all countries they have lived in for 12 months or more in the last 10 years. This includes countries where the stay has been broken by short departures. See our pages on how to get a police certificate. 

Evidence of your partnership

If your partner is applying on your application form too, you need to show that you have been living together in a genuine and stable relationship.

 

Evidence you live together might include original or certified copies of documents showing shared accommodation (such as joint ownership of residential property, joint tenancy agreement, or correspondence (including postmarked envelopes) addressed to both you and your partner at the same address). See more on .

Evidence of your funds and/or assets

You need to provide evidence to show your ownership of the funds and/or assets that you are claiming, and to show your funds and/or assets were earned or acquired legally.

 

Acceptable evidence of the value and ownership of funds and/or assets may include (but is not limited to) original or certified copies of the documents shown below. 

Cash

Bank books/statements.

Property

• Title deeds, and
• a recent valuation report for your property from an independent registered adviser, and 
• mortgage documents or statements showing any liability incurred on the property.

Shares/bonds

• Share certificates
• share printout reports 
• share trading cards (if applicable) 
• a recent statement by a registered share broker or chartered accountant that certifies the current market value of your shares and/or bonds.

Business

• Documents of ownership, or financial interest in, the company/business, and
• an independent valuation by a chartered accountant (or appropriate person), including details of any mortgages, loans, or other financial obligations.

Other assets eg gold bullion

• Evidence of ownership, and 
• a recent independent market valuation.

All documents provided as valuations of assets must be no more than three months old when you make your residence application and must be produced by a reliable, independent agency.

Evidence of earning or acquiring funds and/or assets

Acceptable evidence to show that you earned or acquired your funds and/or assets legally may include (but is not limited to) original or certified copies of the documents below.

Salaries and bonuses

• Personal tax returns or tax certificates
• pay slips
• letters of appointment 
• employer certificates
• bank statements showing receipt of earnings.

Business profits and dividends

• Business financial statements
• evidence of ownership or shareholding in the business
• bank statements showing receipt of dividends.

Property

Evidence of capital appreciation of property, measured as the current value (or sale price if property has been sold) less purchase price, eg solicitor's settlement documents, bank statements showing your receipt of sale proceeds, valuation report for property currently owned.

Investments

• Bank certificates
• evidence of share trading profits.

Inheritance

Probate and evidence of inheritance from your solicitor.

Gifts

Evidence of gifting, and evidence to show that your donor earned or acquired those funds and/or assets legally.

 

You need to give us a summary of the evidence that you are providing, showing how this demonstrates your capability to have earned or acquired your funds and/or assets legally.

 

You may be able to provide other types of evidence appropriate to your circumstances. We may also ask you to produce other information to help us determine your application.

Application fee

You can find the fee for an application under the Temporary Retirement Category in our Fees Guide (INZ 1028) PDF.

After you have submitted your application

If we are satisfied that your application meets the requirements for residence we will approve your application in principle. Find out what you will need to do next.