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All about visas and permits
Having a visa and permit for study in New Zealand means you can study in New Zealand for a set time at a specified institution as a fulltime student.
Length of stay
You can only stay in New Zealand on a student permit for a limited time. In most cases we issue a one-year, renewable permit. If your course is longer than one year you need to reapply for each year of study.
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 permit that expires on 31 March of the following year.
In some circumstances you can stay a little longer in New Zealand, but you need to apply for permission to change your permit. For example, you need to apply for a new student permit if you:
- want to undertake further study so you can meet the requirements for membership to a professional association, or
- are about to complete your course of study and you’d like to remain in New Zealand for your graduation.
If you're not undertaking further study, you'll need to apply for a visitor or work permit.
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’s 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:
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 apply for a special visitor’s visa – a guardian visa – to live with and care for you in New Zealand, but it is not compulsory.
If you are granted a student permit on the condition that you live with a parent or legal guardian in New Zealand, your permit and your parent or legal guardian’s permit may be revoked if you do not meet this condition. You will then both be required to leave New Zealand.
Part-time study
Ordinarily, you need to be studying full time to be eligible for a student permit. However, we may allow you to study part time on a student permit if you are:
- coming to New Zealand to study for at least three years and the course requires you to gain practical work experience as part of your study
or
- 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 visa or immigration officer has to be satisfied that the main purpose of your course of study 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.
Please note: New Zealand law prohibits any person on a temporary permit, including a student permit, from providing commercial sexual services or operating or investing in a business which provides such services.
In order to work, you will need to have the conditions of your permit changed. Find out how to apply for a change in permit conditions.
If you want to work in New Zealand after you have completed your studies, you need to apply under the Study to Work Policy.
Our fees
When you apply for a student visa, you will need to pay a fee. Go to our fees finder to find out what you will need to pay.
People on visit or work permits who want to study
If you’re here on a visitor or work permit and you want to study full time for longer than three months, you need to apply for a student permit.
If you are here on a visitor or work permit and you want to study part time for longer than three months, you can apply for a Variation of Conditions to your current permit.
You cannot undertake that study before we grant you a student permit.
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 permit 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/permit
Most people can be considered for a visa or permit to study in New Zealand. However, to protect the interests of New Zealanders we do not issue visas to people who don't meet certain requirements, or who are involved in certain activities.
If an immigration of visa officer believes you have not made a genuine application for a visa or permit, or that you do not intend to meet the conditions of the visa or permit, we will not issue it to you.
You can be refused a visa or permit if:
- you are not eligible for a visa or permit under section 7(1) of the Immigration Act 1987,
- 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 break the conditions of your visa or permit.
Limited purpose visas
If we are unsure whether you will meet the requirements of your visa, you may need to apply for a limited purpose visa.
NZAID students
We have a different policy for NZAID-supported students (or the partners or dependent children of NZAID-supported students). You will need written approval from NZAID if you want a visa or permit for New Zealand in the two-year period after the end of the NZAID student’s scholarship.
This policy does not apply to any work visas or permits that we give you to complete your course requirements or to any short-term visitor visas or permits.
If you are not sure whether these conditions apply to you, see our examples of eligibility, or, to see the wording of the policy, go to the Operations Manual.
Why we would revoke a student permit
If you fail to meet our conditions of studying in New Zealand we may revoke your student permit. We will do this if:
- you do not attend your course
- you work outside our restrictions
- you stop attending the course for which you were granted the permit and enrol in one we have not approved. You may be able to change courses or providers once you are here but you must first contact us so that we can either change your permit conditions or consider your application for a new student permit
- your NZAID 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. Your parent or legal guardian’s permit may also be revoked in this case.
Once your permit is revoked you will no longer be lawfully in New Zealand and will have to leave.
Page Last Updated: 18 Jan 2008
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