United States of America

Procedures

Applicants for visas and permits must be of good character. You may have to supply a police certificate (or similar) as evidence of good character, depending on which policy you apply under.

Police certificates must be less than six months old when the application is lodged.

We may ask for further police certificates if the initial police certificate becomes a year old from its date of issue before we make a decision on your application; or within the 12-month period if there is good reason to do so.

Police authorities in some countries will only send the certificate direct to Immigration New Zealand. In such cases we recommend that you request your police certificate three months before you lodge your application for a residence visa or permit. We also recommend that you provide us with a copy of the receipt for the requested police certificate (if this is available) to help us to track your certificate.

Residence 

• All applicants aged 17 years or over must provide police certificates at the time a residence application is lodged unless there is a different instruction in the country-specific information (see below).
• If you have lived for periods of 12 months or more in any other countries during the last ten years, you must also provide police certificates from these countries, and also your country (or countries) of citizenship unless you can provide satisfactory evidence that you have never lived there.

Sponsors of applicants for residence under partnership policy

• All sponsors of people applying for residence under partnership policy must provide certificates at the time a residence application is lodged, unless there is a different instruction in the country-specific information (see below).

• Sponsors must provide police certificates for every country where they have lived for 12 months or more in the last seven years. (If you have lived in New Zealand for 12 months or more, then Immigration New Zealand will obtain the New Zealand police certificate after you submit this form.)

• Police certificates must be less than six months old at the time the applicant lodges their residence application.

Temporary entry visa or permit

• All applicants aged 17 years or over who are working, visiting, or studying in New Zealand for 24 months or longer must provide a police certificate.
• The police certificate is to be provided at the time you lodge your application unless there is a different instruction in the country-specific information (see below).
• Applicants must supply a police certificate from any country in which they have lived for five years or more since attaining the age of 17 years as well as their country (or countries) of citizenship, unless they can provide satisfactory evidence that they have never lived there.

If police certificates are unavailable

If you cannot get a police certificate, provide detailed information of your attempts to get one. If we are satisfied that police certificates are not available or it would be unduly difficult for you to get them (for example where the authorities of any such country will not generally provide such certificates), we may instead ask you to make and provide a separate statutory declaration in both English and your own language.

If a statutory declaration is required, it must detail your attempts to obtain a police certificate and state whether or not you, or any accompanying family members, have been found guilty or convicted of, or charged with offences against the law in that country. The statutory declaration should also be corroborated by other information attesting to your character.

Specific procedure for United States of America

Apply in writing for an FBI identification record to the:

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Attn:  Identification Division
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburgh, West Virginia 26306
United States of America

You should provide: 

1. satisfactory proof of your identity
2. a processing fee
3. full names
4. date and place of birth
5. a set of rolled ink fingerprint impressions placed upon a fingerprint card or form commonly used by law enforcement agencies. 

The FBI will tell you the amount of the fee. In New Zealand, some police offices and some security firms provide a fingerprinting service.

For applicants in the United States of America:

You must go to your local police station to complete an Applicant Card and have your fingerprints taken.

Applicant Cards may be obtained through your State Police or Federal Bureau of Investigation or by phoning (304) 625 5590 and selecting Option #3.

Once your fingerprints have been taken you then send this card to the FBI and request a copy of your record listing together with the following: 

1. A written request stating that you are applying for residence in New Zealand
2. Your full name, your date of birth and place of birth
3. Fee US$18 (must be a certified cheque or money order payable to the US Treasury)

The address is: 

Federal Bureau of Investigation Headquarters
C.J.I.S. Division.
Attn. Scu, Mod. D2
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg
WV26306
USA

Further information: see the US FBI's page about requesting records and police certificates www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/fprequest.htm.