2013-Mar 22: Invitation To Apply – Unlawful persons

Visa Pak 104 - Information about issuing Invitation To Apply to unlawful persons in New Zealand

Visa Paks

22 March 2013

Invitation To Apply – Unlawful persons

There has been a recent case where an unlawful person in New Zealand was invited to apply for residence (ITA) under the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) and that person was not advised that the Immigration Act 2009 (the Act) specifically prohibits an unlawful person from lodging an application for residence (refer to the sections 71 (4); 20 and 169 (1) (a) of the Act).

Action:

When considering whether to ITA a person in New Zealand under the relevant category (SMC, Parent Category, Investor 2), staff must:

  1. Check whether the person is lawfully in New Zealand, and
  2. In all instances where staff ITA a person who is unlawfully in New Zealand, they must clearly advise them that an unlawful person cannot apply for residence while in New Zealand by using the relevant ITA letter from the list below (these letters will also be available on AMS from next week).
    1. SMC ITA letter
    2. Parent Category ITA letter
    3. Investor 2 ITA letter