All about student visas

Having a student visa means you can study in New Zealand for a set time at a specified institution as a full-time student.

Length of stay

You can only stay in New Zealand on a student visa for a limited time.

If you are a full fee-paying student you may be granted a student visa for the period for which you have paid course fees (up to a maximum of four years). If your course is based on the New Zealand academic year, and you’ve paid your fees for the year, we may grant you a student visa that expires on 31 March of the following year.

If you are studying with an education provider that Immigration New Zealand (INZ) has a Memorandum of Understanding with, you have the opportunity to apply for a Length of Course visa.

If you are a full scholarship or fees scholarship student you may be granted a student visa for the period of your award (up to a maximum of four years).

Accompanying parents or guardians

If you are enrolled in years 1 to 8 of a school, or you are a student aged 13 or under and enrolled in a private training establishment, your parent or legal guardian must apply for a special visitor visa known as a guardian visa. A guardian visa allows your parent or legal guardian to live with and care for you in New Zealand.

However, your parent or legal guardian won’t have to accompany you if you are:

a domestic student, or
enrolled in a school hostel approved by the Code Administrator at the Ministry of Education, or
in years 7 or 8 of a school, or aged 11 to 13 years and enrolled in any other provider which has approval from the Code Administrator at the Ministry of Education.

If you are aged 14 to 17 years (inclusive), or you are enrolling in school years 9 to 13, your parent or legal guardian can also apply for a guardian visa to live with and care for you in New Zealand, but it is not compulsory.

If you are granted a student visa on the condition that you live with a parent or legal guardian in New Zealand and you breach this condition, you and your parent or legal guardian may become liable for deportation.

Part-time study

Ordinarily, you need to be studying full time to be eligible for a student visa. However, we may allow you to study part time on a student visa if you are:

coming to New Zealand to study for a maximum of nine months, your course meets New Zealand's foreign student policy requirements, you can show us that you have paid the course fees, and you meet our visitor requirements.
OR
in the final semester of a course of study in New Zealand, resulting in a New Zealand qualification that would qualify for points under the Skilled Migrant Category.

Working while studying

You can work part time while studying full time, under certain circumstances:

to meet course requirements for practical work experience, or
during the Christmas and New Year holiday period if you are in a full-time course of study lasting 12 months or longer, and/or
for up to 20 hours in any given week during the academic year if you are in full-time study:
- at a private training establishment or tertiary institution and taking at least two academic years to complete, or
- culminating in a New Zealand qualification that would qualify for points under the Skilled Migrant Category, or
- at a secondary school full year course of study in years 12 or 13, provided you have written permission from your school and written consent from your parent, or
- in a full-time study course lasting at least six months, at a private training establishment or tertiary institution. Your immigration officer has to be satisfied that the main purpose of your course is to develop English language skills and you have an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) overall band score of 5.0 or above (General or Academic Module), or
- at a tertiary level of at least one academic year duration as part of an approved tertiary student exchange scheme.

Note: New Zealand law prohibits any person on a temporary entry visa, including a student visa, from providing commercial sexual services or operating or investing in a business which provides such services. You are not permitted to work in self-employment.

In order to work, you will need to have the conditions of your student visa changed. Find out how to apply for a change in visa conditions.

If you want to work in New Zealand after you have completed your studies, you need to apply under the Study to Work Instructions.

Our fees

When you apply for a student visa, you will need to pay a fee. Go to our Office and fees finder to find out what you will need to pay.

People on visitor or work visas who want to study

Many temporary visa holders may study for up to three months per visa, or for up to three months in every 12-month period where a visa is granted for mutiple years, without being required to apply for a student visa or variation of conditions.

If you’re here on a visitor or work visa and you want to study full time for longer than three months, you need to apply for a student visa.

If you are here on a visitor or work visa and you want to study part time for longer than three months, you can apply for a variation of conditions to your current visa.

Work visa holders undertaking a course of study or training

A variation of conditions is not required if ...

You hold a work visa and you wish to undertake:

a short course for up to three months per visa, or three months in every 12-month period if the visa is granted for multiple years.
any course of study or other training, where the training has been authorised by your employer as part of your employment.

When can I apply for a variation of conditions?

You can apply for a variation of conditions:

at the same time you apply for your work visa, or
at any stage while holding a work visa.

Do I need to pay an application fee?

If you apply for a variation of conditions:

at the same time you apply for your work visa, you will not need to pay a separate fee.
after you have been granted a work visa, you will need to pay the relevant variation of conditions fee.

You may not start studying or undertaking any training until you have been granted a variation of conditions.

Partners and children of students

If your partner or children want to come to New Zealand with you, they will need to apply for a visitor visa or, if they will also be studying, their own student visa.

Medical insurance

You must have appropriate and current medical and travel insurance while you're studying in New Zealand (a requirement of the Ministry of Education's Code of Practice).

Student visa holders are generally not eligible for publicly funded health and disability services. People covered by New Zealand’s reciprocal health agreements with Australia and United Kingdom are entitled to publicly funded health care for immediately necessary medical treatment only.

Students sitting exams in New Zealand for a distance learning course

If you’ve been studying by distance learning with a New Zealand education provider, they may require you to come to New Zealand to undertake practical study, sit exams, or to meet other requirements.

If you need to stay longer than three months you’ll need a student visa. If your stay is for less than three months you can apply for a visitor visa. For either application we’ll need to see proof that:

you are a distance education student, and
you have an offer of a place at an educational institution, and
you have paid the course fees.

Who cannot get a student visa

Most people can be considered for a visa to study in New Zealand. However, to protect the interests of New Zealanders we do not grant visas to people who don't meet certain requirements, or who are involved in certain activities.

If an immigration officer believes you have not made a genuine application for a visa, or that you do not intend to meet the conditions of the visa, we will not grant it to you.

You can be refused a visa if:

you are not eligible for a visa under sections 15 and 16 of the Immigration Act 2009,
you are in New Zealand unlawfully when you apply,
you do not meet our health or character requirements, or
we believe you are likely to stay in New Zealand unlawfully or you would breach the conditions of your visa.

Limited visas

If we are unsure whether you will meet the requirements of your visa, you may need to apply for a limited visa.

New Zealand Aid Programme (NZAP) students

We have different requirements for NZAP students (or the partners or dependent children of NZAP students). You will need written approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade if you want a visa for New Zealand in the two-year period after the end of your or your partner's scholarship.

NZAP students may be granted conditions on their student visa allowing them to work:

during the academic year for up to 20 hours per week,
during any holidays within the academic year for up to 20 hours per week, and
full-time during the Christmas-New Year holiday period.

These work conditions can apply unless the NZAP students are studying under the following schemes:

Short-Term Training Awards, or
New Zealand Regional Development Scholarships, or
English Language Training for Officials.

Partners of NZAP students may be eligible for a work visa valid for the duration of their partner's NZAP scholarship. Dependent children may be eligible for a student visa

This does not apply to any work visas that we give you to complete your course requirements or to any short-term visitor visas.

If you are not sure whether these conditions apply to you, see our examples of eligibility, or to see the requirements in immigration instructions go to the Operational Manual.

How you may become liable for deportation

If you fail to meet our conditions of studying in New Zealand you may become liable for deportation. We will do this if:

you do not attend your course
you work when you do not have the authority to do so
you stop attending the course for which you were granted the visa and enrol in one we have not approved. You may be able to change courses and/or providers once you are here but you must first contact us so that we can either change your visa conditions or consider your application for a new student visa
your NZAP funding stops, or
you are required to live with your parent or legal guardian and you do not live with your parent or legal guardian. In this case, your parent or legal guardian may also become liable for deportation.

Page Last Updated: 03 Jun 2013